


First Duet

by meatonthetable



Category: OMORI (Video Game)
Genre: Bullying, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Forgiveness, Growing Up, Hurt/Comfort, Life Gets Better?, M/M, Mari Lives AU, Sibling Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:06:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29078310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meatonthetable/pseuds/meatonthetable
Summary: The last thing Mari remembered was the feeling of falling.When her eyes opened once again, she found herself lying in a pure, white space. But no matter how much she wanted to believe it was a dream, the truth was that reality was all that surrounded her. A reality where she was alive. A reality where she could move on. A reality where she wanted to move on. A reality where she wanted to forgive, forget, and live happily with everyone she held dear once more.But there wassomethingthere.Somethingthat refused to let things go back to how they once were.
Relationships: Aubrey & Basil & Hero & Kel & Sunny (OMORI), Hero/Mari (OMORI)
Comments: 58
Kudos: 317





	1. The Truth

**Author's Note:**

> **An AU OMORI fic where Mari survives the tragic accident, told primarily from the perspective of Mari.**

_****CRASH!!**** _

_Through the sounds of your fists slamming into the keys of your precious piano, you heard an even more violent sound echo throughout your quiet household. Pushing your frustrations deep down inside, you lifted yourself up from your once comfortable stool, finding it difficult for your tired eyes to adjust to the darkness that surrounded you, after spending so long staring at the pure white of the piano keys._

_As worried as you were about the source of that sound, a quick glance at the room’s clock told you that you had no time for it. The music recital was mere hours away. The music recital that you have spent months and months and months practicing for. The performance that you have poured your heart and soul into. The first performance you were going to play for everyone you held dear. The first duet you were going to perform with your precious little brother._

_So it had to be perfect, because no matter what, you didn’t want to disappoint them._

_“What…?”_

_Yet despite all that, you still chose to run away from your imperfection, quickly discovering the source of the noise at the base of the house’s stairway. With everything that was eating away at your mind, you couldn’t even process what that mess even was. It was only when your eyes moved to the very top of your stairs that the shattered pieces of wood regained its shape within your mind._

_“…Sunny? Why…?”_

_The sight of your little brother staring down at you shattered your heart into a million pieces, just like the fragments of the violin you soon trampled over. There were so many things you wanted to say, so many things you wanted to ask, but no matter how many times you opened your mouth, you weren’t able to utter out a single word. With each step you took up, the anger inside you began to rise, consuming all other feelings that were swimming inside you. Soon, you were now the one staring down at your brother, yet the look on his face hadn’t changed. Frustration, anger, disappointment. You felt like you were staring a reflection of yourself, and that was all it took for it all to come bursting out._

_“Sunny! Why?! **WHY?!** Do you know how expensive that was?! All the hard work everyone went through to get you that?! Our recital is tonight! Everyone was looking forward to it! Why?! Why did you do that?! Now of all times! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?! **What’s wrong with you?!”**_

_The words that came out of your mouth made your feel vile, disgusting, yet you could no longer stop, nor could you understand. All the pent-up anger was directed towards your little brother, but he didn’t respond to a single word, leaving you feeling like you were just yelling at yourself. Did he even understand anything you were saying? Did he even care? You didn’t even need to ask him directly, because your little brother turned and walked away from you without saying anything, making his feelings on this whole mess clear._

_“Don’t you walk away from me!!”_

_Without thinking, you reached your hand out and grabbed your little brother’s arm, pulling him back forcefully. Even if you yourself ran away a few moments ago, he didn’t get to run away from this. You didn’t care if you were being a hypocrite, and you didn’t care if you were hurting Sunny, because he clearly didn’t care that he hurt you._

_“Huh?”_

_But when Sunny used all the strength in his little body to push you away, you were caught completely off guard. You took a step back to prevent yourself from falling, only to find that the ground you were anticipating was much lower than expected. Even worse, the leg that you instinctively threw back was the one with your bad knee, which quickly collapsed under all the unexpected weight._

_As gravity began to drag you down the stairs, you felt as if time itself had slowed down. The music recital that was only hours from now suddenly felt like years away, and the anxious feelings you had towards it felt like a distant memory. Was… the stairway always this long? As you continued to get dragged into the darkness, the stairs that existed between you and your brother felt never-ending, pulling you further and further away from him. But no matter how much distance grew between you, you were still able to see his face clearly._

_The expression on your brother’s face as he watched your slow descent to death._  
_It was no longer one of frustration, anger, or disappointment._  
_It was an expression you never wanted to see on your brother’s face._  
_It was an expression that you refuse to believe your brother could make._  
_It was impossible._  
**_It wasn’t real._ **  
_Therefore, this wasn’t real._  
_This was all just a dream._  
_This was all just a dream._  
**_This was all just a bad dream._ **

_Repeating that in your mind over and over and over again, you simply closed your eyes, hoping you’ll leave this dream._

-♫-

_**Welcome to White Space** _  
_**You have been living here for as long as you can remember** _

Mari’s heavy eyelids slowly opened themselves, and she was greeted with a blinding world of white. She fought the urge to immediately shut her eyes in response, as she felt like she wouldn’t be able to open them again if she did. As her eyes adjusted to the environment around her, it soon became clear that she wasn’t simply laying in the middle of some endless white void like she initially thought. She was laying on a fairly uncomfortable bed, laid out in sheets that matched the white paint of the walls, ceiling, floor, AND surrounding furniture. Thankfully, the monochrome room helped to make the flowers stand out even more, beautiful flowers of all shapes and sizes that were decorated all over her room, saving Mari from the otherwise snore of a scenery.

Just when Mari just about had her fill of the sights, the rest of her senses slowly began to return as well, taking in the rest of her surroundings. The numerous flowers each brought about their own unique smell, mixing and creating an overwhelmingly unique scent to delight her nose with. On the other hand, the lingering taste of bitter medicine on her tongue wasn’t as pleasant for Mari, causing her to silently gag in a vain attempt to erase the foul flavor. But most importantly, she was now able to hear the ambient sounds of the monitor next to her beeping, perfectly synced with the feeling of every beat of her heart.

All her senses worked in tandem to tell her that she was still alive.

“So… it wasn’t a dream…”

Wait. What… wasn’t a dream, exactly? Though all of Mari’s senses began to function again, her mind was still completely rattled, leaving her to question the words that just left her mouth. However, before she could attempt to formulate an answer, the door to her room swung wide open, and a chorus of familiar cries brought her mind back on track.

“Mari! Honey! I’m so glad you’re awake!!”

“Mari… Thank you God. There is a God up there.”

Mari couldn’t help but smile at relief of her mom and dad, though she wasn’t sure if they could see it hidden behind her foggy oxygen mask. Not that it really mattered, since Mari was confident they could sense how happy she was to see them regardless. The same blood flowed through their veins after all.

“Mom… Dad… I’m-I’m sorry for worrying you two…”

“Don’t be sorry, honey! Me and your father are just so… so happy you’re alive.”

“Not just us! Everyone is going to be sleeping good tonight knowing that you’re still breathing. Ain’t that right, Henry?”

“…Henry?”

Mari blinked in surprise as the unexpected name left her father’s lips. Tilting her head to the side in order to curiously look past her parents, the hidden smile grew almost too big for the oxygen mask to conceal. Standing at the door’s entrance was a man Mari would recognize anywhere. Fitted with dark blue slacks and a tacky striped dress shirt only he could make work, and a handsome face that was clearly recovering from distress. But once her eyes locked on to his lips began to curve into a radiant smile. A smile that matched Mari’s so well, she could’ve sworn she was staring at a reflection of herself.

“Mari…”

“Hero…”

“I’m… I’m so glad you’re okay…”

“Okay? I’m more than okay! I’m feeling great! Especially now that I know you’re here~”

As if to show off just how “great” she was feeling, Mari flexed her right arm in a comical manner, just liked Kel loved doing around his friends. Despite knowing it was merely a show, Hero couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief, knowing that Mari was good enough to have her sense of humor.

“Alright Henry, we’re gonna step out for a bit and call everyone else to let then know that Mari is okay. Keep her company for us, alright?”

“Yes sir.”

“We’re going to stay until closing. What about you, dear?”

“Ah… yes. I’m going to be staying until closing too. I’ve already gotten permission from my parents.”

“Did you want to get a ride home with us?”

“If-If it’s not too much trouble, ma’am…”

“Of course it's not, silly! We’ll give you two some alone time then.”  
  
Feeling each of their hands rest of his shoulder for a moment, Hero could only silently thank Mari’s parents as the door closed behind him. Scooting over a nearby stool to Mari’s bedside, the two now sat together in silence, with only the constant sound of the heart monitor between them. There was so much Hero wanted to say to Mari, so much he wanted to tell her, but he chose to sit in silence for just a while longer, letting his body soak in the melody of the beeping machine next to them. It was a melody that had no rhyme or rhythm to it, but every note that played told him that his beloved Mari was alive, so to Hero, it was the most beautiful melody he’s ever heard.  
  
“So… guess I missed the music recital then, huh?”  
  
There was only so much of Hero’s cheesiness that Mari could take before she had to step in, breaking the silence between them. Hero was impressed that she reached her limit that quickly, but was also quite surprised, as he didn’t even say anything yet! " _Was… was she reading my mind?!"_ Hero pondered to himself, half-jokingly.  
  
“Yeah, it’s been about five hours since the show was supposed to start.”  
  
“I see…” Mari said to herself, looking around at all the flowers that decorated her room.  
  
Noticing the forlorn look on her face, Hero tried his best to quickly reassure her. “You know word spreads quickly around this town, so everyone who was invited the recital knows why it got cancelled. When they heard the news, most of them passed by to drop off these flowers.”  
  
“Is that so?” Mari cheered. “Well I’m gonna have to thank them for making this room a lot less boring!”  
  
“Haha, I can get a list of everyone who dropped off some flowers, so that way you can…”  
  
“There’s no need for that,” Mari interrupted proudly, wagging her finger at Hero. “I already have a good idea of who dropped by.”  
  
“Really? But how?”  
  
“Well… thanks to the flowers of course! The kind of flowers they bought for me tells me a lot about them, and tells me a lot about what they think of me~!”  
  
“Oh really now.”  
  
“Yeah really now! Hmm… like those variegated tulips over there… those were from your mom, right? She tells me I have beautiful eyes like every other day, after all.”  
  
“Heh, lucky guess!”  
  
“It was **not** a lucky guess, it’s…”  
  
“The language of flowers, right?”  
  
“Right!” Mari parroted happily. “Basil taught me a lot about the language of flowers! You should ask Basil to teach you too. Sure beats all the French classes they’re gonna offer at college. _Enn~uye~use~”  
_

Mari couldn’t help but snicker at her own dumb joke, but Hero’s reaction wasn’t exactly what Mari was expecting. A complicated look came over Hero’s face as he casted his eyes downward, which brought Mari’s snickering to an awkward an abrupt halt.  
  
“Come on,” Mari joked, tilting her head slightly sideways to try and meet Hero’s eyes. “My joke was bad, but I don’t think it was that bad.”  
  
“No, it’s not that,” Hero sighed, rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry, but it’s just… bringing up Basil…”  
  
“Huh? What about Basil.”  
  
“I’m just… I’m just so grateful to him, you know?”  
  
Understanding this was something serious, Mari’s entire posture and tone adjusted accordingly. “But why?”  
  
“You don’t know?” Hero questioned. “What am I saying? Of course you don’t know. Sorry… it’s just been a really long day.”

Hero cursed himself for being so sensitive, but Mari was quick to comfort Hero by gently placing her hand on top of his.  
  
“It’s okay Hero,” Mari smiled lovingly. “Just tell me what happened.”  
  
Hero took a deep breath, then smiled wearily in return. “Basil… Basil was the one who called us. Mom and I were out shopping for nice clothes, while Kel and Dad were out getting a haircut. We were all getting ready for the music recital tonight, but I got a call from Basil in the middle of it all, and he… he told us that you got into an accident.”  
  
Hero paused slightly, his voice nearly cracking from the mere mention of those words.  
  
“He said that you tripped and fell down the stairs. He said that he tried to catch you without thinking, and while his body softened the blow, the fall was still violent. He said your head was bleeding, and you weren’t moving… and… and that we needed to get home quick. After hearing all that I just… I just couldn’t believe any of it was real. I didn’t want to believe any of it was real. But even so, I just dropped everything and just ran back as fast as I could. I didn’t think about telling mom, or calling dad, or even getting mom to drive us back home. I just didn’t think at all, I just ran and ran and ran until I made it back to your house. And when I went in, everything Basil said was true.”  
  
Hero paused once more, holding his hand to his chest as if he was recalling the pain. Was it the pain from the running, or the pain of finding Mari a bloody mess? Perhaps both? Hero wasn’t sure, but either way, it was a pain that hero was never going to forget.  
  
“I called 911 immediately, then I called everyone else. Dad, Kel, Aubrey, your parents, everyone. I wanted to move you… I wanted to make sure you were alive… but I was… scared… so I just stayed next to you until the ambulance arrived and took you here. Everyone followed you and were here most of the day, but they went home before you woke up. They all wanted to stay of course, but, well, it is Monday tomorrow.”  
  
Hero took a look at the clock hanging on the wall, seeing that it was just ten past eleven. Kel would normally be deep in dreamland by now, but Hero couldn’t help but be concerned at his brother’s concern. Hopefully Mari’s parents are contacting everyone and putting them all to ease.  
  
“But yeah, that’s basically the whole story. That’s why I’m so grateful to Basil. If Basil wasn’t at your house at the time… if he didn’t try to stop your fall… if he didn’t contact all of us when he did… you might…”  
  
Hero’s voice trailed off to a quiet whisper, not wanting to consider such a tragic scenario. After having laid out the entire story to her, hero joined Mari in silence, allowing time for both of them to absorb the knowledge. However, while Hero shut his eyes in relief, grateful to Basil for sharing the truth, Mari’s eyes instead began to widen, as a dark realization began to creep all over her body.  
  
Because after going over the story over and over, Mari soon came to realize that Basil had lied.  
  
“What about my little brother? How is Sunny? Did he come to visit too?”  
  
“Sunny? He was with Basil when I arrived, but I was in so much shock over you that I didn’t really pay them any attention at the time. When you were being driven to the hospital your parents wanted him to come along of course, but Sunny refused. He looked like… he was in complete shock. I don’t blame him of course, since I was in shock too. I can’t even imagine how he felt seeing his big sister in that state…”

Quickly noticed a change in Mari’s complexion, Hero tried to return the comfort she gave him earlier, mistaking her despair for concern over her brother. Hero knew the two were practically inseparable, so it was only natural for Mari to think about her brother even after going through something so terrible herself. It’s one of the many reasons he fell for her, after all.  
  
“Don’t worry though! Sunny is just as tough as his big sister!” Hero reassured. “I’m sure he’ll feel way better once he learns that you’re just fine. Basil was here with Kel and Aubrey earlier, but after they had to leave, Basil said he was gonna keep Sunny company for the night. With Basil there, I’m sure everything will be okay.”  
  
“Yeah, you’re right…” Mari smile, though with much less enthusiasm as usual. “I’ll have to thank Basil, and apologize to him as well. I’ll have to apologize everyone who stopped by, since I’m sure they were all looking forward to the musical recital…”  
  
“You don’t need to apologize for anything,” Hero said sternly. “The musical recital isn’t important. What’s important is that you’re okay.”  
  
“The musical recital was important to _me_ ,” Mari fired back, glaring at Hero. “It was… important to Sunny too. Jerk.”  
  
“You’re right, sorry…” Hero retreated, aware that he wasn’t going to win against Mari. “I’m sure your parents have called him already, but I’ll go check up with them and let you know how Sunny’s doing, okay?”  
  
“Okay. Thank you.”  
  
Rubbing the back of his head once more, Hero made his way towards the room’s exit, knowing he didn’t stand a chance against their sibling bond. However, just as Hero reached for the door’s handle, Mari called out to him one last time.  
  
“Henry?”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“I love you.” Mari smiled.  
  
“I love you too.” Hero smiled back.  
  
With a click of the door closing, Mari was now left all alone, with nothing but the beeping melody of the heart monitor to keep her company. It was a melody that assured her she was alive, but it was also a melody that brought the difficult emotions swallowing her heart to the surface. The hospital room had no window, yet ever since Hero left, the creeping shadows of the hospital slowly began to consume the world around her, turning the pure white space into a wretched black.  
  
She loved her little brother more than anything in the world, so why did it take her this long to think about him? Why did it take this long to ask about him? Why did it take this long for his name to cross her mind? Did the fall make her forget about everything that happened? Or… was she trying to make herself forget? Was she trying to convince herself that this was all still a dream? That she was just going to wake up and everything is going to be okay? Because she didn’t want to accept the truth…  
  
The truth that Sunny was the one who pushed her down the stairs. The truth that Sunny was the one who almost killed her.  
  
“Ow!” Mari winced, as a searing pain shot through her legs when she attempted to hug her knees. “ _Guess the fall really was more brutal than I thought. Sunny must’ve really put his all into shoving me…”  
  
_“No.” Mari whispered, settling on laying back down instead. With her arm over her eyes, she tried her best to drown out the reality her mind was slowly starting to accept. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.”  
  
She would never forget.  
She would never forget that image of the shattered violin. The shattered remnants of everyone’s hard work and love.  
She would never forget the feeling of realization she had when she began to fall down the stairs.  
And she would never forget that expression on her brother’s face as he watched her fall.  
  
But she refused to believe that was her brother.  
She refused to believe her brother was capable of making such an expression.  
She never wanted to see that expression on her brother’s face ever again.  
Therefore, that was not her brother.  
  
She had fallen down the stairs.  
She was pushed down the stairs.  
That was reality.  
  
But it wasn’t her brother.  
Sunny was a good person.  
He loved her more than anything.  
And she loved him as well.  
He would never do something like that.  
So it wasn’t her brother.  
It wasn’t Sunny.  
And if it wasn’t Sunny.  
  
“Then it was _something_ else…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a month since I've played OMORI and yet I still haven't been able to stop thinking about it. It's been like 1000 years since I've gotten this attached to a game, and it's been about 10,000,000,000 since I've written fanfiction. I really want to express my love for this game in some form, but no one I personally know has given it a chance, so I settled on writing as the next best/worst thing.
> 
> For a character that we _really_ didn't get to spend that much time with, Mari ended up being one of my favorite characters. I have a soft spot for siblings (especially bonds between little brothers and older sisters), so I wanted to write a story that focused on the bond between Mari and Sunny. I want to keep the story as close to canon as possible, so there'll be inconsistent gaps between chapters as I play through the game again in order to gather valuable info.
> 
> Any comments or critiques will be greatly appreciated. :) Would love to talk about the story, or even the game in general.


	2. See You Tomorrow

“…The bad news is that I have to diagnose your daughter with paraplegia, meaning that she’s paralyzed from the waist down…”  
  
Mari’s parents naturally asked for the good news first, but after hearing what the doctor followed it up with, Mari couldn’t even remember what the good news was anymore.  
  
Amidst her father’s silence, a silence so heavy it drowned out even her mother’s cries, the doctor’s words were crystal clear. But if that’s the case, then why was the girl those words should affect the most the only one showing no emotion?  
  
“Her head and her spine suffered the most impact from her fall. We’ve scanned her brain multiple times, and thankfully, there doesn’t seem to be any permanent damage. Unfortunately, her spinal cord wasn’t as lucky…”  
  
Because that girl who suffered such a cruel fate was Mari, the shining sun of Faraway Town. The girl everyone loved, because she loved everyone before she loved herself.  
  
At least that was what she told herself.  
  
“Of course, that doesn’t mean your family has to give up hope. Even after she’s discharged from the hospital, we can provide routine physical therapy, monthly medication, and even psychotherapy if needed.”  
  
But the truth is that Mari was only human. Even she could be imperfect. Even she could be selfish. Even she would get upset if her parents made decisions for her life without her input, almost acting as if she wasn’t even there.  
  
Not that she could really blame them in this specific situation. After all, she understood the doctor’s every word, but she wasn’t really listening. She understood the reality of her condition, but she wanted to believe this was all a dream. She could see her parents standing in a room belonging to their now disabled daughter, but Mari herself was laying alone in a lonely white space.  
  
“I’ll give you time to discuss the best course of action amongst yourselves, but just know that it’s best we file the paperwork before you leave today, so be sure to let me know.”  
  
With his role complete, the doctor graced the family with a respectful bow before leaving them to their sort their own feelings. Once the door to her hospital room closed, the door to her white space was opened in response, forcing her to crawl back into reality. Almost as if she just arrived in the room, her parents gazed at her with their honest feelings reflected in their eyes, so Mari felt they deserved an honest response in return.  
  
But her parents were far braver than she could ever hope to be, so she simply responded with a smile.  
  
“Hehe… I guess not being able to play sports anymore wasn’t good enough, huh? But on the bright side, at least I can still play the piano!”  
  
Was _that_ the good news? Maybe only to Mari. With her arms stretched out, Mari faced her palms towards her parents, waving them back and forth in an attempt to show the bright side of the situation. Her mother gently wrapped Mari’s hands with her own, pulling herself closer to embrace her one and only daughter.  
  
“I’m sorry sweetie… I’m so sorry…”  
  
Feeling her mother’s tears slowly trail down her shoulder, even Mari’s smile couldn’t help but falter slightly. However, Mari soon joined in her mother’s embrace, choosing to stay strong for the sake of her parents.  
  
“Don’t be sorry mom, it’s not like it was your fault,” Mari whispered. “Let’s just be happy that I’m alive.”  
  
Oh… maybe _that_ was the good news.  
  
“Don’t worry Mari, we’ll pay for any and all treatment,” Mari’s father muttered to himself, his eyes now glued onto his phone. “Anything to get you back on your feet. I have to break the news to everyone before we leave. God damn it… damn all of this…”  
  
Her father exited the room with a frustrated sigh, while her mother tightened the hold on her daughter. The tears had slowed down, but Mari could still feel her mother’s pain, both in a literal and figurative sense.  
  
“We’ll always be here to take care of you,” her mother sobbed into her shoulder. “No matter what happens, we’ll always love you.”  
  
“Thank you mom,” Mari whispered, resting her hand on the back of her mother’s head. Her father’s response to this tragedy was to run away from it, while her mother chose to never let it go. Her father cared more about getting the old Mari back, while her mother was more than ready to accept the new one. Even with everything changing so fast, Mari felt relief in knowing that her parents haven’t changed one bit.  
  
But deep down, there was something about that that scared her.  
  
“I appreciate it mom, I really do,” Mari smiled, slowly easing her mother away from her. “But this has all just been so sudden, and none of it has really sunk in yet. I think… I need some time alone so I can process it all. Is… that okay?  
  
“Of course sweetie!” Her mother replied, wiping the lingering tears from her eyes. “Don’t hesitate to tell me whatever you need.”  
  
Understanding her daughter’s desire for space, Mari’s mother straightened herself out and quickly headed to the room’s exit.  
  
“Oh, and mom?”  
  
“Yes?”  
  
“Could you tell dad that I’ll tell Hero?”  
  
“Of course sweetie.”  
  
“Thanks mom…”  
  
With one final wave shared between the two, Mari was left alone in the room once again, with nothing but the lingering smile of her mother to accompany her. Once even that too left her, it didn’t take long for her own weary smile to follow suit, leaving behind the face of a broken girl.  
  
As her body sank deep into her hospital bed, her mind began to sink to a place becoming all too familiar to her. In a desperate attempt to not get trapped in that white space, Mari reached her hand out towards the bedside counter, bringing her flip phone closer to her. Even if they weren’t next to her, she wanted to feel someone’s presence, she wanted to have someone to talk to. It was the only way to escape that white space.  
  
Flipping her phone open, she caught a glimpse of her sorry mug before being greeted by a more welcoming screen. Wasting no time, she dialed a number she had already memorized by heart, and placed the phone next to her ear, holding her breath at the sound of each ring.  
  
“Hello? Hey Hero. How are you? I’m good… well… actually, sorry, but are you free right now? I… I have something to tell you.”

**-♫-**

After what felt like an eternity, but was realistically only a week, Mari was finally discharged from the hospital. On the morning of her last day, her parents were already waiting for her before she even woke up. Greeting each other with smiles brighter than the rising sun, the three wasted no time sharing their excitement in having the entire family back home once more.  
  
While her mother ran back and forth transporting any material goods, her father assisted the nurses in moving Mari safely onto her brand-new wheelchair. She had a few chances to practice moving on a wheelchair during her time here, but since her father really wanted to do something for his daughter, she decided to conceal her full power just for today.  
  
As suffocating as the room was, saying goodbye to it was a little harder than expected. Mari wanted to take home all the flowers that her loved ones gifted her, but several of them wilted throughout the week, so Mari’s mother only allowed her to take a handful back with them. Bidding a final farewell to the room, Mari made a silent promise to super-duper thank the people who brought her the flowers she had to leave behind.  
  
The journey to leave the hospital took much longer than expected, as the number of people Mari had to bid farewell to grew with each floor they descended, and her parents had to file a _lot_ of paperwork. Mari didn’t mind though, and neither did her parents. After all, everyone in this hospital took such good care of her, and Mari knew that she was going to be seeing a lot of them more often from now on.  
  
By the time the large sliding doors of the Faraway Medical Center shut behind them, Mari was breathing in the afternoon air of a town she missed dearly. After getting a fill of the familiarity, her father helped move Mari from the wheelchair to their car’s backseat, while her mother folded the vacant wheelchair up to fit it into the back trunk. Mari was genuinely surprised that there was even room in the trunk for her wheelchair and belongings, as you usually couldn’t even pay her hoarder of a father to clean the nightmare that lived back there.  
  
_“Even in a terrible situation like this, you can find a few good things if you look hard enough.”_ Mari mused to herself.  
  
The car ride home was pleasant, but uneventful. Her father occasionally chimed in while he drove, but her mother carried most of the small talk, interrogating Mari on her time at the hospital while sharing on everything Mari missed out on back in their neighborhood.  
  
Mari casually responded to everything her mother threw at her, but the truth was that she was barely even listening. Mari was far more interested in listening to the pleasant breeze fly past her open window, as well as the cheesy lyrics being sung on the stereo. Mari asked her mother what the name of the song was, and couldn’t help but stifle a laugh at the response she got. With a name like “Good Morning”, those lyrics made a lot more sense. The song playing now of all times felt a bit too on the nose for Mari’s taste, so she figured this was no mere coincidence, but most likely her mother’s doing. After all, between her mother and her boyfriend, Mari frequently had a hard time determining who was the bigger cheeseball. Guess her mother expected them to get out of that hospital sooner than they did though, so she might have to apologize for that later.  
  
But the melancholic song was soon interrupted by the enthusiastic barking of the world’s most chipper dog. Sticking her head out of the window like she was a dog herself, Mari gleamed as their next-door neighbor’s pet ran up to the lawn’s front gate.  
  
“Hey Hector! I missed you buddy!”  
  
As the car parked slowly into their own house’s driveway, Mari gave a huge wave to the dog, who wagged his tail back in response. Anytime she came back to the house, the first thing Mari always did was walk over to Hector and give the good boy a well-deserved petting. Unfortunately, as much as she wanted to right now, walking wasn’t exactly something she’ll be capable of doing for a good long while, if ever.  
  
As sad as it made the both of them, Hector would have to settle for Mari’s distant affection for now, waving back and forth as she waited for her parents to set up her wheelchair.  
  
“Nobody’s home right now,” her father said, seeing what grabbed Mari’s attention. “It’s a weekday after all, so they’re at work, and the kids are at school.”  
  
“Oh no, it’s fine!” Mari replied. “I wouldn’t want to bother them right now anyways. Besides, I’m feeling a little homesick, so I just want to relax at home right now.”  
  
Making sure Mari was comfortable, her father began to push her towards their house’s entrance, while her mother stayed behind to see how many of the items left behind in the car she could carry at once. As her father parked her in front of the house door in order to unlock it, Mari could feel her heartbeat getting faster and faster.  
  
_“Take a deep breath Mari… Don’t be afraid. It’s not as scary as you think.”  
  
_The irrational side of Mari feared that she wouldn’t recognize whatever was on the other side of the door. But as her father slowly pushed the door open, what waited for her on the other side was the same house she’s lived in for all sixteen years of her life.  
  
Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, Mari wasn’t entirely sure. But regardless of her fears, being greeted by her cozy living room has never failed to bring a smile on her face, and this time was no different. Mari was only gone for a little over a week, so why did she even think things would change that much? Sometimes, Mari couldn’t help but want to smack herself _and_ her silly thoughts.  
  
However, her fears weren’t _entirely_ misplaced, as getting pushed into the living room proper made her discover something that _did_ conflict with her memory. Against the living room wall between the front and backyard door, a familiar pink bed was placed where a long wooden table used to be. A familiar bed in an unfamiliar location, with a very familiar ball of black fuzz laying on top of it.  
  
“Mewo! I’m home~!”  
  
Hearing her name called, the black ball of fuzz quickly sprung to life, bouncing off the bed towards her owner that she missed so dearly. Finding Mari’s lap as a suitable replacement for the comfy bed, Mewo soon uncurled herself as a sign that she wanted affection, which Mari happily provided by running her fingers through her soft fur.  
  
“Did you miss me Mewo? Because I sure missed you~” Mari cooed. “I hope you were a good girl while mommy was gone~”  
  
“Oh Mewo was an absolute angel,” Mari’s mother said as she stepped into the house, hands full of the gifted flowers. “She was to me at least, but not so much to your father. She barely budged from your bed the whole week and got frisky with anyone who went near it.”  
  
“Gave me a few scratches for my trouble,” her father chimed in bitterly, relieving his wife of a few of the flowers and placing them on the nearby coffee table. “You think she’d be nicer to the guy who bought her and gave her a home.”  
  
“Come on dear, you know Mewo meant well. She was just trying to protect Mari in her own way.”  
  
“Suuuure she did,” her father scoffed. “Either way, it made moving your bed a bigger pain than it needed to be. Henry was the one who finally got her to move, and he and his dad helped me move your bed down this last weekend. I thought about moving your bed to the piano room at first, but it might cramp the room up for you too much, so I decided to throw it here instead. Figure it’d be easier on your… you know… your condition. If you wanted it in the piano room though, we could move it this weekend.”  
  
“Hmmm… no I think this is perfect!” Mari assured. “With this set-up, I can watch TV while lazing about in bed all I want! _Heheheh~_ ”  
  
“ _No one_ living under this roof is allowed to watch TV after dark,” her mother scolded.  
  
Mari stuck out her tongue in annoyance, but it was all harmless fun between them. Mari wasn’t _actually_ planning on watching TV after dark, as she preferred to do activities that stimulated her mind a little more before letting it rest for the night.  
  
Mari also didn’t really mind where her bed was relocated; she appreciated the effort and thought her father put towards moving it regardless. The awkward attempt he made to try and sidestep the elephant in the room however… not so much. It was understandable, but it was completely pointless.  
  
Just come out and say it.  
She was crippled, and she will most likely never be able to walk again.  
  
Even if you avoid saying it out loud, it won’t change anything. Whether it was the bed laying in a place where it didn’t belong, or the inability to feel the warmth of her cat resting on her lap, she was going to be reminded of her condition every day of her life. So her father’s intentional avoidance of the topic seemed to be more for his sake than for Mari.  
  
Not that she could call him out on it, because she was just as guilty as she was. Like father, like daughter.  
  
Because no matter how warm and welcoming this home made her feel, there was a cold chill that subtly crept up her spine. A missing word in this perfect family fiction being written in her head. One she purposely omitted… and was too afraid to acknowledge.  
  
“But really,” her mother sighed. “To think that Sunny won’t even come down today of all days. I thought for sure that he would feel better after Mari came home…”  
  
But being the person Mari inherited her perfectionist tendencies from, it was only a matter of time before her mother filled in the word no one else wanted to.  
  
Sunny.  
The name of her precious little brother.  
The name of the person who pushed her down the stairs.  
The name of the person who ruined her life.  
  
“Seriously, what the hell is wrong with that boy?” Mari’s father quickly responded, almost as if he were waiting for the perfect excuse to start ranting. Seems like he didn’t mind talking about _this_ elephant in the room.  
  
“Dear!” Mari’s mother snapped.  
  
“His sister is back from a life-threatening experience, and he can’t even bother to come down and greet her?” Mari’s father snapped back. “It’s disrespectful!”  
  
Mari’s perfect world was suddenly starting to crack.  
Or maybe the cracks have always been there, and she just refused to look at them.  
  
“N-Now now…” Mari said nervously, trying to draw a line between her parents. “There’s no need to be so hard on Sunny, dad. It really doesn’t bother me.”  
  
“Seriously dear,” her mother sighed angrily. “Mari _just_ came back. We don’t need to do this right now.”  
  
Her father’s face contorted into a look that just screamed “you’re the one who brought this up”, but after seeing how both the women of the house were against him, he wisely dropped the subject.

“I just don’t get it. He’s acting like _he’s_ the one who fell down the stairs. Mari is the one who had the accident here, and she’s acting perfectly fine. Why can’t he just be more like Mari?”

Retreating deeper into the house, Mari’s father muttered under his breath, unaware that it was just loud enough for her and her mother to hear. Though the pain from his words lingered, his voice soon became inaudible, instead being replaced by the sounds of him climbing the stairs. Even without words, Mari could tell that her father was still upset, as his steps were erratic and filled with anger.  
  
Each step he took produced an ugly, dissonant sound, almost as if he was literally stomping on the keys of a piano. Vile. Disgusting. Suffocating. It reminded Mari that despite all hours she’s sacrificed on her piano, she was still only capable of producing this horrid sound. Each step was further and further from her, yet the noise grew louder and louder. So loud and so painful that she almost believed it was the sound of her own beating heart, ready to burst out of her chest.  
  
Did the sound of those stairs always make Mari feel this uneasy?

**-♪-**

Before she knew it, the slight chill of the morning had completely taken over the warmth of her home, leaving nothing but a cold, quiet, and dark living room for Mari to lay in.  
  
After the awkward confrontation with her father, Mari’s mother believed that Mari simply wanted to spend the rest of the day alone. But the _last_ thing Mari wanted was to be alone, so she threw every excuse she’s learned throughout her life in order to glue her mother to her hip. She wanted to keep her mind busy. They won’t get to spend as much time together after she goes back to work tomorrow. She wanted her mother to catch her up with everything she missed during her week of absence. Truth and lies mixed together in a pointless plea, as Mari’s mother was more than willing to be there for her daughter, even if she had just asked normally.  
  
Not wanting to have the flowers that survived the hospital stay go to waste, they both decided to arrange them all into one decorative centerpiece. Absolutely smitten with the idea, Mari’s mother wasted no time bringing out a brand-new vase alongside a bunch of flower arrangement tools. Her mother claimed that she just had the vase lying around, but Mari suspected that she bought it ahead of time because she predicted something like this would come up. Mari wouldn’t put it past someone as sly as her mother.  
  
They filled the vase with purified water, pruned the extra leaves, carefully cut the stems, and arranged the flowers in a way that was visually pleasing. With how easily they created what Mari would dub a “superb work of art that belongs in a museum”, it was nice to know that all the flower arrangement classes they took were really paying off.  
  
“I gotta say,” Mari said as she rubbed her nose, admiring their finished work. “I think we get to pat ourselves on the back for this one! This looks absolutely beau~ti~ful!”  
  
“It really does sweetie,” her mother agreed, joining Mari in her admiration. “I really love your idea of pairing the roses with the lily of the valleys, and how you framed everything with the tulips. It really makes it look like a photograph of flowers!”  
  
“Haha, I’m glad you like it! Sunny was actually the one who showed me this framing technique, so I wanted to try it out for myself!”  
  
With the name of their missing member leaving Mari’s lips, a brief silence hung heavy over the two, causing the complicated feelings bubbling inside Mari to almost pop.  
  
“I really hope Sunny joins us again soon,” Mari whispered, softly poking one of the tulips. “He really seemed to enjoy arranging flowers with us.”  
  
“He will sweetie,” Mari’s mother assured her daughter, as well as herself. “He really loves you, so your accident must have been a really big shock to him. We haven’t told him about your condition yet, but I’m sure… he’ll get better soon. Especially once he sees you. Until then, we just have to be there for him, and we have to catch up to him while we have the chance too! His flower arrangements make ours look like a joke!”  
  
“Hey!” Mari objected, playfully tapping her mother’s shoulder. “Didn’t you _just_ praise my artistic talent like five seconds ago.”  
  
“Did I? I don’t remember. I must be getting up there in age.”  
  
“Oh come on, you can’t be pulling the age card when you don’t even have a single gray hair on your head. Besides, Sunny gets private flower arrangement lessons from Basil, so it’s not even fair!”  
  
“Oh, Basil really loves flowers too, doesn’t he? What a sweet boy he is. He hasn’t come over ever since the accident either, which is a real shame, since I’ve been wanting to thank him.”  
  
“Thank him? For what?”  
  
“Didn’t we tell you? When the accident happened, he was the one who called Henry, who then called us. We were all out preparing for the recital, and Basil said Sunny was completely out of it. If he wasn’t there to contact us, who knows what would have happened to you…”  
  
Huh. All Mari could do was sit there silently, absorbing everything her mother told her. Hero told her something similar back at the hospital, didn’t he? It wasn’t that she didn’t believe Hero, but now that her mother backed up his statement, Basil saving the day became more _real_ in her mind. She didn’t recall seeing Basil at all that night, but to be fair, Mari was trying her best to erase that night from her memories anyways.  
  
“Well the next time you see Basil, please just thank him for us. We owe him such a huge debt.”  
  
“Yeah, I will mom,” Mari assured, putting Basil at the very top of her mental “thank you” list.  
  
“Oh look at the time! I need to start making dinner!”  
  
Mari got so invested in the flower arrangement that she didn’t even realize how much time had passed. Looking up from her work of art, she saw that her house was now tinted with the deep orange glow of the setting sun. Mari helped her mother with cooking here and there, but for the most part, Mari just spent time getting used to maneuvering around the first floor with her wheelchair.  
  
It was only when dinner was ready that Mari got to see her father again, but no words were shared between them. There were a few conversations between her parents, but when her mother left to bring a plate of dinner to Sunny’s room, the only thing that accompanied the awkward silence was the sounds of their dinnerware.  
  
Once dinner was over, Mari’s father retreated to the living room while the two ladies claimed the kitchen. As he watched TV on full blast, Mari’s mother helped Mari get ready for bed by washing her down and getting her dressed in her pajamas. After spending the rest of night watching late night horror movies, her parents helped transfer Mari to her bed, leaving her with two kisses to the forehead.  
  
Just when everyone was going to turn in for the night, her father finally decided to speak up.  
  
“See you tomorrow, Mari.”  
  
And under the veil of the moonlit night, Mari’s smile was even brighter than normal.  
  
“See you tomorrow, dad.”  
  
“See you tomorrow, sweetie. If you need anything in the middle of the night, then just call me okay? You know I’m a light sleeper.”  
  
“I know mom. See you tomorrow.”  
  
Once her parents disappeared into the darkness of the other room, Mari quickly covered her ears, wanting to avoid the sounds of their footsteps as they made their way upstairs. After counting to twenty, she slowly removed her hands from over her ears, and let out a sigh of relief when she heard nothing but the silence of her brand-new bedroom.  
  
Laying comfortably in her bed, Mari simply stared blankly up at the ceiling, letting the entire day sink into her. When left all by herself, the living room seemed so much bigger, didn’t it? This was also the first time she’s slept all by herself in this house, wasn’t it? Mewo was sleeping on the edge of her bed, but it just wasn’t the same without Sunny sleeping in a bed next to hers.  
  
“Now that I think about it, why do we say “see you tomorrow” to each other when it’s time to sleep? We say “good morning” when we wake up, but when it comes time to say “good night”, we say “see you tomorrow” instead. I know that mom was the one who started saying it, and we just kinda adopted it, but why and when did she even start?”  
  
Without anyone else with her, Mari’s late-night ramblings were left unchecked. Though Sunny usually found it difficult to reply to his strange sister, he was a _very_ good listener. He would always listen to Mari’s late-night ramblings, no matter how silly or sad they were. Without Sunny here to listen to her thoughts, her thoughts became about Sunny instead.”  
  
“Sunny… what happened between us… on that night…”  
  
Mari was tired, and she just wanted to stop thinking. She wanted to sleep. She wanted to wake up the next morning and find out that nothing has changed. That horrible night never happened.  
  
She typically tried to get a few pages in before going to bed, but all of her books were either upstairs or still packed away in her luggage, and she didn’t want to bother her mother over something like that.  
  
Twisting herself to her side, Mari went from gazing at the ceiling to the darkness of the living room. If she squinted hard enough, she could make out the outline of Sunny within the dark, tossing and turning in his bed as he tried to get comfortable. He moved a lot in sleep, so when they slept in the same bed together, Mari would sometimes find herself waking up on the floor. Sunny always felt bad and apologized for it, but Mari laughed it off every time.  
  
Feeling his sister’s gaze on him, Sunny turned to look back at Mari, and she was able to see a small smile form on his lips. Mari flashed back a smile in return, happy that she could at least complete the last of her nightly customs.  
  
“See you tomorrow… little brother.”  
  
With one final wave at nothing, Mari then shut her eyes, quickly sinking into a deep sleep.

**-♬-**

**“Waiting for something to happen?”**

When Mari opened her eyes, the darkness that she left behind was now replaced by a bright white. It was so bright that it disoriented Mari, causing her to believe it was already morning. Jumping up in surprise, she didn’t need to wait for her brain to catch up to her body in order to understand that this was just a dream.

After all, she was _standing_ in this empty white space.

**“Mari…”**

Mari jumped in surprised at the sudden sound of another person, as she thought this was a space only for her. She turned, and her body instantly froze. When her eyes locked on to the source of the call, she lost control of her emotions, and it took all her strength to keep her quivering legs from crumbling under her.

It was the last person she thought of, and it was the last person she ever expected to see.

“Sunny…?”

He was a kid who was quiet, shy, and a little awkward, but she loved him with all her heart. She would recognize her precious little brother anywhere, and that’s why she knew there was something not right about him.

His pure white skin, which blended in well with the monochrome world that surrounded them, was contrasted only by his black tank top, striped shorts, and black hair. The boy _looked_ like Sunny, but he was devoid of any of her brother’s color. Devoid of any of his _warmth_. His appearance was a complete insult to his name.

And that expression on his face. His empty eyes devoid of any life, with a gaze both sad and frightening, looked as if they were going to consume Mari at any given moment. It was an expression that her precious brother could never possible make.

This was not Sunny.  
This was something wearing her brother’s face.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me preface this by saying that my medical and floral knowledge are in the negatives. So if you find anything factually incorrect about those subjects in this chapter, then don't blame me, blame Google. 
> 
> Secondly, I want to apologize if you find this chapter slow-paced; this one you can blame on me. This chapter was originally supposed to be only half of a chapter, combined with the next one. Unfortunately, I have this bad habit of not being able to stop writing once I started, and the next thing I knew, Mari returning home was long enough to end up being its own chapter. The slower parts of Faraway Town, the times where you can just watch the townsfolk live their everyday lives, or simply live your own own life with your friends, were some of my favorite parts of the game. Because of that, I wanted to use this story to portray those kinds of moments for the Mari that never got to experience them. I'm not expecting you to see that as an excuse, but simply an explanation. At the very least, I can promise you that the "plot" will start to develop more next chapter, if that's what you're looking for.
> 
> At its core, this story is about the relationship between Sunny and Mari. However, the story will also focus heavily on her relationships with other characters close to her in the main game, which I feel are important building blocks for the siblings. This chapter focused on Mari's relationship with her parents, and it was fun to write out my interpretations of them using what very little character we got from them in the game.
> 
> And yes, I am an absolute nerd that's using the names of my favorite OMORI tracks as chapter titles. The next chapter is titled _Finding Shapes in Clouds_ , so Mari will get a chance to go out and see the Faraway Town she's missed out on for more than a week. Perhaps she'll even have the pleasure of being accompanied by the town's greatest tour guide.
> 
> **Some other random quips:**
> 
> \- I know that Basil associated Omori with tulips at the very start of the game, but I couldn't remember if he ever associated a specific flower to Sunny. If he did, and someone could let me know, then I'll change the type of flower that ended up in the centerpiece. 
> 
> \- My headcanon is that in the game, Mari's mom arranged all of the floral bouquets for Mari's funeral. She asked Basil to help her with the decor, but Basil guilt wouldn't allow him to accept.
> 
> \- Mari is a cool girl who would totally be rocking a flip phone with ten million charms attached to it. She only has the strength to lift it because of all the flex training she does with Kel.


	3. Finding Shapes in the Clouds

When Mari was younger, she really loved playing softball. Her father was initially hesitant about having his daughter participate in such a physical activity. However, Mari’s happiness was so contagious that eventually, her father had no choice but to adopt his daughter’s emotions.

The empowering feeling of swinging the bat with all her might. The sound of impact when it collided with the ball. The view of the ball flying further and further away from her, until it disappeared into the clouds. The rush of adrenaline that she felt as she ran across the entire field. The elation of being surrounded by all her friends, as the announcement of their victory soared above them.

It made her feel happy.  
It made her feel happy to be alive.

And so every time she played softball, she tried to swing the bat even harder, make the ball fly even father, and push herself to run even faster. She pushed herself past her own limits because the more effort she gave, the more happiness she received in return. She pushed and she pushed and she pushed because happiness was something she could no longer live without.

Until her knee crumbled under the weight of her own happiness.

It was a tragedy that stole her ability to play softball, but Mari wouldn’t allow it to also steal the happiness it gave her. Even when she walked with a slight limp from then on. Even when there were days that simply standing on her bad leg caused her excruciating pain. Even with all that, she was able to hide it all behind a smile. She was able to walk among her friends and tell them that everything was okay.

But now… that was a lie that could only exist in her dreams.

Just like this _thing_ wearing her brother’s face.

“You… the one who pushed me down the stairs… it was you… wasn’t it?”

The imposter responded with silence, but the expression that accompanied him told Mari everything she wanted to know. His hollow gaze was the exact same one that haunted her on that horrible night. It was an expression that she would recognize anywhere. It was one she would never forget.

“W-Why did you push me down the stairs? And why do you l-look like my little b-brother?!"

Though his mouth continued to be still, the imposter himself began to walk forward, erasing the silence between them. Each step he took reverberated through the endless White Space, forcing the haunting echo to dig deep into Mari’s ears. As he started inching closer and closer to Mari, the anger and confusion she felt began to shape into something else entirely, causing her body to start shivering.

“Stop… s-stay away from me…”

Even in this world where Mari could still stand on her own two feet, she didn’t have the strength to move them, no matter how badly she wanted to. All Mari could do was watch apprehensively as the imposter stepped ever closer to the frightened girl. Once the imposter was close enough for Mari’s pathetic whimpering to be audible, she instinctively closed her eyes, fearing a fate worse than the one she suffered on that night.

But… no matter how long she dreaded, nothing ever came to be. Slowly opening her eyes, it was the first time she felt a slight hint of relief towards seeing this White Space. Unfortunately, as she slowly turned her head, it was clear that her relief was going to be short-lived.

With their backs turned to each other, the imposter kneeled and reached towards an object shimmering with a color foreign to this White Space. Mari was mistaken; she originally believed that _she_ was the imposter’s visual target, but it seemed that his eyes were always set on the object beyond her.

However, as the imposter wrapped his fingers around the object’s handle and swung himself around to once again meet Mari’s gaze, the look in her eyes reflected on the knife’s surface told her that she was at least right about one thing…

He wanted her to suffer a fate worse than the one on that night.

And it was that truth that finally gave her the strength to run.

For the first time since her softball days, Mari ran harder and faster than her body could handle. Fueled by pure fear, she ran into the endless white without any semblance of direction or destination, all she wanted was to get as far away from that _thing_ as possible.

Yet no matter how loud her legs screamed for help, or how difficult her gasps for air made it for her to do the same, the gap between the two never changed. Even when she felt like she made considerable distance, she would end up right back where she started, as if the White Space itself was dragging her back with its own hands.

Despite it all, she would keep running. No matter how many times she was pulled back, she would keep running. She would run and run and run and _run_ until she had no choice but to stop. Because if she didn’t, it would be her own exhaustion that killed her, not the imposter.

Mari’s vision began to blur due to the fatigue, so much so that even the desolate White Space began to distort into something a little less lonely. A plain sheet covering the floor, a box of tissues, a laptop, a sketchbook, and even her pet cat? Mari didn’t have the wherewithal to understand why these things suddenly existed, she simply chalked it up to delusions.

But out of the corner of her eye, there was one delusion that caused her ragged breath to slow to a crawl. Whether it was real or not didn’t matter, what mattered was it was the glimmer of hope a girl on the verge of giving up needed. That dirty white door was her escape from this nightmare.

Practically throwing herself at the door, she twisted, pushed, pulled, clawed, slammed, kicked, and tackled with everything she had left. When one thing didn’t work, she put even more force into the next, escalating into a rabid cycle so violent that her desperate cries soon sounded more like they were out of pain than fear.

“PLEASE! CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?! SOMEONE PLEASE OPEN THIS DOOR! I’M TRAPPED IN HERE! I’M BEGGING YOU! PLEASE! ANYONE!! **_PLEASE_ _!_ _!_** "

**“The escape you seek is not there, for the worlds that lie beyond the door do not exist for you.”**

Even amongst all the brutality, Mari heard those words loud and clear. Of course, she couldn’t possibly understand such a cryptic message, but it was enough to drain what little energy she had left out of her. Her deafening onslaught slowed to a mere whisper, until all that was left was a pathetic girl leaning on the very door she was trying to so desperately open. With her forearms propping her up, she weakly banged her forehead onto the cold wood, the time between each impact getting longer and longer, until even that too came to a quiet halt.

“…Then… how do I get out of here? Please… just let me out of here…”

**“For a FALSE DREAMER like you, there is only one way to escape the WHITE SPACE.”**

Mari barely even heard her own plea, so she was surprised that he not only heard her question, but was seemingly willing to answer it as well. Pushing herself away from the door, she felt one last glimmer of hope before it was quickly taken away from her by the imposter, who didn’t even give Mari a chance to regret her decision.

“U-Ugh…”

The warmth from Mari’s exhaustion quickly froze over, and a searing pain coursed throughout her entire body. Looking down towards the source of her pain, the image of the knife’s handle sticking out of her abdomen was burned into her eyes. From the area where the knife handle was sticking out, an endless amount of blood poured down her body, contrasting heavily with the white floor it began to paint over.

Unable to bear the sight any longer, she used every working muscle in her body to tilt her head up, meeting the eyes of the person who stabbed her. Through the reflection of his eyes, Mari could see that the color was draining from her face. She was becoming a pale, ghastly white, growing closer in color to both the space around her and the person in front of her.

“Why… Why… Sunny…”

Losing all feeling in her legs, Mari was forced to lean her back against the door, slowly sliding down into the pool of her own blood. With her skin drained to white, her mind began to go black, as Mari began to feel her pain, her feelings, and her consciousness drift away. But even in what she perceived to be her final moments, she wanted answers. She wanted to know why the little brother she loved so much would do something like this. No… that was wrong… she wanted to know why this _thing_ would do something like this.

But she never got them. Just like on that night, as Mari fell into a black abyss in both mind and body, the hollow eyes of _something_ merely peered at her from above.

**-♫-**

_“…ri… …ari… … **Mari**!”_

When Mari opened her eyes, she was greeted by her mother. The darkness of the night was draped over her, but Mari was still able to make out mix of concern and relief on her face.

“Mom…?” Mari asked groggily. “What’s wrong? What… happened?”

“What happened?! That’s what I want to ask you sweetie!” Mari’s mother asked as she ran to turn on the living room lights. “You were screaming so loud that you could’ve waken up the neighbors! And when I ran down here, you were on the floor! Are you okay?! Are you hurt?!”

Mari’s eyes instinctively winced as the light flooded the living room, but the sudden shift helped to snap her out of her sleep-caused stupor. As she slowly allowed her eyes to adjust, the home around her began to look as clear as her understanding of the situation.

It was a common occurrence when Mari shared a room with Sunny, and it was something Mari always laughed off. But right now, as she lay sprawled on the living room floor, the only thing she wanted to do was cry.

“Sorry for waking you mom…” Mari muttered, trying to push herself up to a seated position. “I think I was just having a bad dream.”

“A bad dream?” Mari’s mother repeated. “With the way you were screaming, I thought someone broke into the house!”

Rushing over to her fallen daughter, Mari’s mother lifted her up off the floor, checking for any bumps and bruises as she rested her body onto the bed.

“Does anything hurt? You aren’t bleeding, are you?”

“I’m fine mom. It’s not like I fell from the top of a building; I just fell off my bed.”

“You’re still recovering! We have to make sure you’re okay. Did you want me to call 911? I can call off work and…”

“Mom.” Mari said, turning her eyes away from her mother. “I don’t want to go to the hospital, and I don’t want you to call off work. The only thing I want is to go back to sleep. _Please_.”

With Mari putting her proverbial foot down, her mother unwillingly quieted her concerns. Mari’s mother wasn’t convinced, but her daughter’s tone caught her so off guard that she was practically shocked into submission.

“…Okay, but if you scream your head off again, then we _will_ go to the hospital. Deal?”

“Deal.”

“Alright then,” Mari’s mother whispered, kissing her daughter’s forehead. “See you tomorrow, sweetie.”

With one final glance behind her, Mari’s mother shut the lights off and returned upstairs, leaving Mari alone once again. With her ears covered, Mari slowly counted to ten using the beat of her own heart, relieved that she avoided the sound of her mother’s steps when her hands were finally lifted.

Manually moving her legs, Mari twisted her body around to face the side of the room where her brother should be. After staring into the empty space for what felt like an eternity, she let out a dejected sigh before deciding to turn back to the side she was laying on originally. 

Mari closed her eyes, but she didn’t sleep. Contrary to what she told her mother, falling asleep was the _last_ thing she wanted to. She wanted to avoid that White Space at all costs. She never wanted to see that devil wearing her brother’s face ever again.

**-♪-**

“So get this! Apparently I was talking in my sleep last night.”

“Really? That doesn’t sound like you at all.”

Hearing the voice of Hero coming out of the house phone placed neatly on top of the kitchen counter, Mari’s mood was about as high as the afternoon sun above Faraway Town.

Mari was impressed with herself, considering she actually didn’t sleep for the rest of the night, and she spent what little energy she _did_ recover forcing her mom to go to work. Mari was physically drained, but thanks to Hero, she was at least able to support her mentally.

“Does anyone else sleep talk in your family? Some people believe sleep talking is a genetic thing. Oh and have you been eating well? Poor eating can cause sleep talking too… uh… I think…”

“Of course I’ve been eating well,” Mari lied. “Yeesh! Who are you, my mother?”

“Well no. If I was your mom, then I would’ve already known you were sleep talking…”

“ _Very funny_. I mean, I do move around in my sleep a lot. Since I can’t move my legs anymore, I guess that means all that energy goes to my mouth now instead.”

“Mari… I don’t think that’s how that works.”

With her hair tied up in a ponytail, she draped the red kitchen apron over herself, wanting to make sure that she didn’t dirty her white dress shirt and long purple skirt. Staying in her pajamas was an option, but being at home all day wasn’t an excuse to not dress properly, so Mari asked her mother to help her dress like a girl who wanted to be productive.

“What kind of stuff were you saying in your sleep anyways?”

“Come on now Hero, that’s not the kind of stuff you ask a girl!”

“Huh? Really? S-Sorry, I didn’t know…”

“But if you _really_ want to know… hmm. According to my mom, I wasn’t saying anything out of the ordinary. Just typical Mari stuff, like _my Hero has come for me~_ and _how I yearn for the sound of your sweet voice~_ and _marry me Hero… here and now! Do so and I will let your fans live!_ ”

And productive she was, wheeling herself around the kitchen in record time, all while holding a conversation with Hero. The two slices of toast practically flew out of the toaster and right onto Mari’s waiting plate, which was then placed on the busy kitchen counter, in between the house phone and the mess of school papers Mari laid out earlier. After spreading melted cheese over each toast, she evenly placed slices of steak she previously cut on top of one toast, then covered them with the second toast. After aligning all the ingredients, she used a semi-large steak knife to cleanly cut the sandwich right down the middle.

And with that, Chef Mari’s perfect steak sandwich was complete. Just the way Sunny always liked it.

“…As embarrassing as it is to admit, I can _definitely_ believe that you would say those things. Guess I should be glad that it was your mom who heard you sleep talk, and not your dad…”

“Yeah, otherwise we would have to get matching wheelchairs!”

“……Mari……”

“Hm? What’s wrong Hero? Come on, I was just joooooking~”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just that… I’m sorry that I won’t be able to see you for a while. Finals are coming up, so I’m heading over to the school library right now to study. And with college prep stuff, I’ll be getting back home after dark pretty much every day of the week. And I have work on weekends, but I also study on the weekends too, so…”

“It’s okay Hero, just breathe. Don’t worry about it too much.”

“ I can’t _not_ worry about you, Mari. Everyone should be by your side. _I_ should be by your side.”

Hero’s shift in tone was obvious, but while Mari’s tone stayed the exact same, the smile Hero couldn’t see began to waver. Mari really did understand the pressures that were piling on Hero at this time of year, but that didn’t stop the ugly parts of her from being conflicted.

Part of Mari was happy that Hero was concerned about her, but she also wished that he would stop acting like things needed to be different. Part of Mari was glad that his studies were giving her a chance to breathe, but part of her was upset that he was putting his studies over her.

It was dumb, and it was selfish. Mari knew that, but she still couldn’t control the part of her that felt that way, and it made her feel ill.

“You have enough to stress out about Hero. We’re in the same year, so I know how tough school is right now. If you want to help me, focus on your studies, and focus on your job. I know how important college is going to be for you, and I don’t want to be the reason you don’t get to go. Please Henry… for me, okay?”

Mari was met with silence for a good while, but once the sound of a defeated sigh played through the phone’s speakers, a small smile returned on her face.

“You know I can’t say no when you pull _that_ line on me. Fine, you win... I’ll try my best not to worry about you _too_ much.”

“Good. I don’t want your hair turning white before we reach thirty after all!”

“Ahahaha… even if that did happen, I’ll just have you dye my hair anyways.”

“You’ll let me dye it blue, right?!”

“Er, no… let’s stick to my natural hair color, okay?”

“Bleh. So _boooooring~_ ”

“Yeah, yeah…” Hero chuckled, audibly waving off Mari’s complaints. “Anyways, I’m at the library now, so you’ll have to let me go, okay? I’ll see you the moment I’m able, I promise.”

“Pinky promise?”

“Of course.”

“Alright, I’m looking forward to it then. Love you Hero~”

“Love you too Mari.”

Hero was the first to hang up, leaving the repetitive ring of a vacant phone to fill the silence that now surrounded Mari. Placing the phone back in its stand, Mari quickly turned on the television in the living room, as well as the kitchen radio as a replacement. Mari wasn’t interested in what was playing on either device, she simply didn’t want the house to be quiet.

“Speaking of school, I need to finish those worksheets before today ends. But before that…”

Taking a deep breath, Mari slowly turned her head towards the steak sandwich sitting on the kitchen counter. Before Mari’s mom left for work, she explained that Sunny wouldn’t even come out of his room for food, so she would have to leave his meals at his door.

Obviously Mari wasn’t physically capable of something like that, but she promised her mother that she would at least attempt to call him down for his food, which her mother more than supported. If anyone could get Sunny out of his room, her mother believed that Mari could.

Looking back on it now, a promise to her mother wasn’t even necessary. Mari was Sunny’s big sister, so it’s only natural that she would take care him, right? She always did things like this without being expected to, so this time shouldn’t be any different… right?

Repeating that in her head, she slowly and steadily rolled her way out of the kitchen, through the living room, and towards the stairs that she’s been avoiding ever since coming back. The entire trip felt like an eternity, but after about thirty seconds, Mari’s downward casted eyes found themselves being greeted by the base of the very first step.

“Hey… S-Sunn-“

It took all Mari’s courage, but the moment she worked up enough to tilt her head up slightly, her body was instantly filled with regret.

The stairs originally meant to connect to the second floor now extended well beyond that, its length reaching so high and so far from Mari that it looked like it could have been a stairway leading up into the clouds. However, what the endless stairway disappeared into was no heaven, but a living hell.

Despite it being the middle of the day, what was once the second floor was now consumed by a thick, abnormal darkness. The edges of the black void slowly extended outwards, consuming the light of her home in the shape of human hands, creeping steadily towards the girl at the bottom of the stairs. But worst of all, despite not being able to see the end of the stairs, Mari was able to see _something_ standing at the very top. Something that brought all the horrible thoughts of that night back into the front of her mind. Something that was slowly walking down the stairs.

Mari wanted to call out his name, but her voice wouldn’t come out. Mari wanted to scream, but it felt like there was a noose around her neck. She turned her head downward and shut her eyes, unable to bear the sight of the living nightmare any longer.

She slammed her palms over her ears, trying to block out that dissonant sound of footsteps, but it was a meaningless effort. Even when she stuck her fingers so deep into her ears that they began to bleed, even when she tore her ears off her head completely, the steps only got louder and louder. It was just too much for Mari to handle. Her breathing became heavy, frantic, and her heart was beating so quickly and so painfully that she felt she was having a heart attack.

 _“Why? Just why? The person that pushed me down the stairs wasn’t Sunny. It was something else. It wasn’t Sunny. It **wasn’t** Sunny. So why can’t I call out his name? Why am I so scared of him walking down the stairs? Do you want him to starve? Do you want him to suffer? Of course you don’t. So call him down here. Hug him. Tell him that none of this was his fault. Tell him that he didn’t do it. Tell him that you love him. Tell him that everything is going to be okay. You want to do that more than anything, don’t you? So why can’t you do it? _ _Why? Why?! Why?! Why? !Why?!WHY?! WhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYW **HYWHYWHYWHYWHY**.”_

**_**KNOCK** *KNOCK** **KNOCK**_ **

****

Mari’s eyes shot wide open, and she was greeted by a normal looking stairway leading up to a normal looking second floor. Her hair was a mess, sweat was pouring down her body, and her breathing was still heavy, but the things that caused her to succumb to such a pathetic state were nowhere to be found.

**_**KNOCK** *KNOCK** **KNOCK**_ **

****

The brutal knocking on her front door caused Mari to nearly jump out of her wheelchair in surprise, which certainly didn’t do her already strained heart any favors. Pivoting her wheelchair, she slowly moved herself back towards the living room, refusing to look once more at the stairway behind her.

**_**KNOCK** *KNOCK** **KNOCK**_ **

Arriving at the living room, she was relieved to hear sounds still coming from the radio and the television she left on, though they were both overpowered by the incandescent knocking of whoever was at their front door. She was still in quite a daze from whatever just happened, but the more knocks she heard, the clearer her mind became.

After about twenty-four knocks, Mari’s senses had completely returned to her, which made her realize who was at the door before even needing to open it. After all, there was only one person who would be _that_ dedicated to being _that_ annoying.

“Hellllllllllooooooooooooo~ Anyone hoooooooooooooome~?”

“Yes, yes, I’m coming!”

With her hunch confirmed, Mari no longer wasted time making her way to the front. Unlocking it as quickly as she could, Mari greeted the brown-haired boy with a warm smile, and was greeted with his signature goofy smile in return.

“Hi Mari! Top of the morning to you, hehehe.”

“Hi Kel! You’re a little… late with that greeting though. But what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in school?”

“Huh? How come? School ended like thirty minutes ago.”

“…What?”

Mari blinked in surprised and turned her head towards the living room clock. It was 2:40 in the afternoon, which meant that school really _has_ been over for a while. But Mari couldn’t help but find that strange, because the last time she checked the clock, it was only noon wasn’t it? That was the reason why she started making lunch after all. There was no way that much time could pass without her noticing… was there?

“Huh, I guess you’re right,” Mari said. “So what are you doing here then?”

“Weeeeeellllll…” Kel drawled for dramatic buildup, dusting the outside dirt off his orange, cat-print t-shirt and blue shorts before stepping inside. “I’m here to drop off these!”

Digging through his matching orange backpack, he littered Mari’s pristine living room floor with crumpled paper and broken pencils, before pulling out a miraculously clean stack of papers. Mari was on the verge of chewing Kel’s ear off, but Kel wiggled the stack of papers back and forth with such enthusiasm, that Mari decided to give the boy a free pass. _Temporarily_.

“Ta-da! It’s our homework for the entire week!” Kel announced. “Our teacher asked if anyone wanted to give them to Sunny, so of course I raised my hand! And since my parents told me to give you guys some space for a while, this gives me a good excuse to come over and hang out with you guys!”

“Thank you Kel,” Mari smiled. “That’s very sweet of you!”

“And if Sunny doesn’t get his homework, then I won’t have anyone to copy off of!”

“I’m… _not_ gonna pretend that I didn’t hear that.”

“Sweet, thanks! I think? Wait... you’re _not_ gonna pretend you _didn’t_ hear that, so does that mean… um… you… won’t… tell Hero?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see,” Mari teased. “Anyways, Sunny is in his room.”

“Oh I know!” Kel chirped, giving up on trying to decipher Mari’s thinly veiled threat. “I’ll have these dropped off in a jiffy!”

“Hold on a second delivery boy.”

Kel was already in the midst of zooming towards the stairs, but Mari’s words skidded his momentum to a halt. Mari waved for Kel to follow her towards the kitchen, where she picked up the plate with a slightly cooled steak sandwich on it.

“Since you’re already going up there, think you give this to Sunny too?”

With a smile and salute, Kel proudly accepted Mari’s request. As Kel ran off towards the stairs, Mari slowly lifted her hands towards her ears in preparation for the worst, but despite the sound of Kel’s stomps booming throughout the entire house, Mari’s heart stayed surprisingly calm. Kel had a bad habit of making the things around him much louder, but for this specific moment, his words, his actions, and his presence managed to quiet down Mari’s unstable heart.

The moment of reprise was incredibly brief, as before Mari could even blink, Kel was jumping down the stairs almost as quickly as he stomped up them. Soon sliding back into the kitchen, Kel greeted Mari with his hands up in the air, and a smile that just screamed “victory!”.

“BOOYAH! MY DOOTY IS DONE!”

“Excellent work, Mr. Kel!” Mari praised.

Mari reached her hand out for a high five, but pulled back slyly the moment Kel went it for the big swing.

“Though I thought I told you simply deliver the steak sandwich, not _eat_ it.”

“H-Huh? Whachu mean? I-I didn’t eat anything!”

“Uh huh,” Mari replied as she began to wipe Kel’s cheek with a napkin. “So you’re telling me that those bread crumbs just maaaaaagically showed up all over your face, right?”

“Oops.” Kel grinned as his cheek got squished back and forth. “Guess ya caught me… but I didn’t eat the whole sandwich, I promise! I just took one bite! Just a taste test! You know, like how waiters take a bite out of your food before they bring it to you, just to make sure they’re about to serve you the tastiest food ever!”

“Kel.”

The only way Mari could respond to Kel’s headache-inducing reasoning was with a deep, painful sigh. And his name.

“Kel… if you were hungry, then you could have just told me, and I would’ve made something for you. Also, if you’re eating at places where waiters are eating your food before serving it you, then you should really stop going to those places.”

“Heh heh heh…” Kel laughed with a sheepish grin. “Sorry, it’s Monday today, which means they only had spaghetti at the cafeteria. Their spaghetti really stinks, so I just skip lunch on Mondays. Maaaaan, I just don’t get why they have to give us the worst-tasting food on the worst day of the week.”

“Well did you want me to make you a steak sandwich? I think we still have some leftover steak I can cut really quick.”

“Nah it’s cool.” Kel waved. “I’m gonna head over to the plaza right now anyways. It’s Mon~day, which means Hobbeez has the newest volume of Captain Spaceboy for sale! Gotta go get it so me and Sunny can read it together. I’ll just use my lunch money to buy something at Othermart while I’m there.”

Mari so badly wanted to ask why Kel didn’t go to the plaza _before_ coming here, but she ended up holding her tongue. Kel wasn’t ever one to really plans things that far ahead, so Mari coughed up the answer to a single word: Kel.

“Well… thank you for doing all this for Sunny,” Mari smiled. “I know that you’re concerned about him staying in his room for as long as he has, but… try not to worry about _too_ much, okay? He’ll get better, I promise.”

“Nah, I’m not that worried about Sunny.” Kel replied casually, with not a single hint of malice in his tone. “He’s always been a quiet guy, so it still feels like I’m hanging out with him, even if there’s a door between us. Besides, now that you’re back, I’m sure he’ll get better even quicker!”

Mari let out a small chuckle as she cast her eyes downward. Hero was a natural worrywart, so having to ease his worries was something Mari had to do often. On the other hand, Kel’s response made the difference between him and his brother pretty clear.

Kel hasn’t treated Sunny any differently. Kel hasn’t treated _her_ any differently. Through Kel’s eyes, they were just the same friends he’s always had, so there was no reason for him to be anyone other than himself. It made her feel stupid, but Mari was _jealous_ of a twelve-year-old boy. Jealous that he was so much stronger, and so much braver than she was. How can he walk up to Sunny’s door without a care in the world, while she feels uneasy just being in the same house as him?

It was a question she knew the answer to, but one she refused to say. If she did, it would mean admitting everything to herself, everything she’s been trying so hard to bury since that night.

“Well I’m gonna head to Hobbeez now, so I’ll see you later Mari.”

“Hold on a second Kel.”

Having a feeling of déjà vu, Kel skidded to a stop just as he was revving himself up to a run. Kel curiously turned towards Mari, but she briefly averted her gaze, glancing towards the room that led to the stairs. After taking a deep breath, she removed her apron and met Kel’s curiosity with a mischievous smile.

“Mind if I go with you?”

**-♬-**

By about 3PM, Mari and Kel were making their way down the street next to Faraway Park. Initially, Kel wanted to push Mari the entire way there, but it didn’t even take a block to realize that Kel wasn’t able to steer that well when he was behind her. For Mari’s own safety, she insisted that she moved on her own, which bummed Kel out so bad that he was _still_ pouting.

Mari couldn’t help but laugh, but she also felt a little bad. Kel was always sensitive about his height, after all.

“Say Kel… are my eyes playing tricks on me, or have you gotten taller?”

“Come on Mari… you don’t need to lie to make me feel better. That kind of stuff works on Hero, but it doesn’t work on me.”

“I’m being serious!” Mari insisted. “You really look like you’ve grown an inch or two.”

“...........................................................................................R-Really?”

“Really! At this rate, you’re gonna be even taller than Hero!”

Almost like a switch was flipped inside him, Kel’s frown instantly turned upside down. Pulling his hands out of his pocket, he began to rub his nose out of embarrassment.

“Aw man, I knew that I’ve gotten a little taller since last month! Drinking all that Orange Joe is starting to pay off!”

Guess Kel and Hero were more similar than Mari thought. They were both so _easy_ to please.

“Yeah… yeah…! I think you’re right Mari! At this rate, I’ll be taller than Hero by next month!”

“Yeah! Maybe even by next week!”

“Yeah!! And then by the end of the year, I might have grown tall enough to reach the clouds! Then I can start collecting them~ Heh heh heh~”

“Collect… the clouds?”

“Uh huh,” Kel nodded. “There’s so many different and cool looking clouds up there. They’re like the toys in Hobbeez’s capsule machine, but they’re free!”

“Well that’s certainly… an interesting way of looking at them.”

“Look! Look! Like that one… that one looks like a frying pan! And that one looks like an eggplant! And that one looks like a watering can! And… that one looks like a basketball!”

Mari’s eyes followed Kel’s finger as it shot up into the sky, darting between each of the clouds as Kel described them. To be perfectly honest, Mari couldn’t see anything that even vaguely resembled the stuff Kel was describing. But with Kel’s innocent eyes sparkling as brightly as they were, Mari would have to be a monster to cloud them.

“Hmm… yeah, that one _does_ look like a basketball.” Mari chuckled. “Since when did you become so interested in clouds, Kel?”

“Heheheheh…” Kel chuckled back, pointing towards the park they were walking by. “When I was playing in the park last week, I saw a girl sitting under a tree and drawing stuff. I think her name was… uh… Mickey? Mindy? Something like that.”

“I see. Was she drawing the clouds, then?”

“Yup! At least that’s what she told me. But the stuff in her sketchbook didn’t even look like clouds. They were like animals and fruits and weird stuff. I didn’t really get it at first, but she told me that she drew what the clouds looked like to her.”

Kel paused briefly to look up at the sky again, making a mental note of all the clouds he wanted to add to his collection when he got tall enough.

“She said she liked looking at clouds because everyone saw different things in them, and the shapes of your clouds determine the kind of person you are… or something like that. I didn’t really understand everything she said, but I started looking at the clouds more often since then, and I’ve been seeing them turn into a lot of cool things! It’s been super fun!”

Even though they were borrowed from someone else, Kel’s words were surprisingly profound. Personally, Mari wasn’t a big fan of clouds, she would even say that she _disliked_ them. They occasionally brought rain with them, and Mari hated the damp, dreary atmosphere the rain created. She was an outdoors girl through and through, so she never liked when the rain forced her to be cooped up inside.

But the biggest reason she disliked them was because they would always shroud the sun she loved so much. Whether they meant to or not, clouds made the world a little darker just by existing. So for someone who saw clouds as nothing but stains on beautiful sky… what kind of person did that make her?

“That’s why I’m hoping I’ll get tall enough to reach the clouds soon!” Kel continued, swinging his arms back and forth. “I wanna display the best ones in my room, and maybe have Minny draw them too! Oh!”

Spotting Hobbeez in the distance, Kel pulled his head out of the clouds, and ran ahead of Mari in excitement. Waving towards Mari as he held the door open, Mari waved back while she caught up at her own pace. Soon arriving at the front of the flashy hobby shop, Mari looked up at the sky one more time before entering, pondering the stranger’s words.

Maybe it was Mari’s imagination, but after hearing those words… the shapes of the clouds now looked just a little different in Mari’s eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated Lunar New Year for anyone who celebrates it, and a Happy Valentine's Day as well.
> 
> I'm sorry that I'm not posting a Hero x Mari chapter on Valentine's Day. You can blame Kel for stealing his brother's spotlight this chapter, but hopefully that small moment between Hero and Mari had just enough sweetness for you to forgive him?
> 
> For what was probably the least developed bond in the main cast, I had a fun time writing my interpretation of Mari and Kel's friendship. They're not the closest friends in the group, but I always had the impression that they were two peas in a pod, cut from the same cloth, and other similar phrases. Out of everyone in the group, Mari was the one who would humor, encourage, and even partake in Kel's silliness, much to the dismay of Hero. But if Kel crossed Mari's line (which he did very often), then Mari ended up scaring Kel more than his mother did.
> 
> I hope this chapter showcased just a little of how they got along, and I'm definitely planning on having them hang out more as the story continues on. The next chapter is called _Hanging With The Boys_ , and not only will it continue the adventures of Mari and Kel, one of the other poor kids might get unwillingly roped into their shenanigans.


	4. Hanging With The Boys

“YOOOOO SHOPKEEP! YOUR FAVORITEST CUSTOMER IS HERE!!”

Even amidst a store that prided itself with its flashy inventory, Kel managed to steal the spotlight the moment he stepped foot into Hobbeez. Temporarily attracting the eyes of the few other customers within, they quickly regretted their decision as Kel’s blinding smile directed itself towards one person in particular.

“Favoritest customer? More like most annoying customer. You know how much of my merchandise you ruin every time you come in here? And how many times do I have to tell you not… to… yell…”

Looking up from the box of brand-new videos games behind the counter, Shopkeep could only return Kel’s smile with a grimace. Though as ruined as he believed his day was, his tune slowly changed the moment he realized who wheeled their way in right after the boy.

“M-M-M-M-M-M-M-M-M-M-M-Mari?!”

“Yo Shopkeep!” Mari waved with a smile. “Your second favoritest customer is here!”

Looking like a deer caught in the headlights, Shopkeep briefly ducked behind his counter, taking the myriad of merchandise littered all over the counter down with him. It was apparently an attempt to hide the unpacked mess, but it only served to create an even bigger one.

“Shopkeep!” Mari cried out as she made her way over in concern, thinking he tripped over something. “Are you okay?!”

“Yup. Fine. Totally fine.” Shopkeep recovered, picking himself up and leaning on the counter in the “coolest” way he knew how. “Totally meant to do that. What about you? Are you okay? Er… sorry, that’s a bit insensitive. I meant to say… it’s been forever, hasn’t it?”

“Oh Shopkeep, always so dramatic!” Mari laughed. “It’s only been two weeks, you know.”

“Heheheh… time flows differently within the walls of Hobbeez.” Shopkeep boasted, adjusting his glasses in the “coolest” way he knew how. “Also, my name isn’t _Shopkeep_ , it’s—"

“Hey Shopkeep!!” Kel interrupted, yelling all the way from the comic book section. “Where the heck is the new issue of Captain Spaceboy?! Don’t… don’t tell me you sold out already?!”

“Bad news kiddo, but we sold out like an hour ago. Captain Spaceboy is the hottest thing on the block right now, so kids and collectors sweep em up quick.”

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!” Kel despaired. “No way! Ugh… of all the issues to miss… the climatic battle against Clover and Sealife…”

“Luckily for you, I have a third eye that allows me to see into the future, so I already prepared for such an outcome.” Shopkeep boasted. “Turn your mortal eyes to the second shelf, five rows from the left, and behind the sixth comic book. There you should find the 47th issue of Captain Spaceboy… a copy I have hidden just for you.”

“Really?!” Kel beamed so bright that even Mari had to avert her eyes. “Thanks Shopkeep! You’re the best!!”

After Kel disappeared back into the comic book isle, Mari re-opened her eyes and flashed a slightly dimmer smile towards Shopkeep, one that crumbled his façade instantly.

“Look at you Shopkeep~” Mari teased, stealing his smug attitude. “If that’s how you treat your most annoying customer, I can’t even imagine how nice you are to your favorites~”

“Aw come on Mari, cut me some slack!” Shopkeep replied bashfully. “Besides… I’m not doing it just for him. Kel said he reads em with Sunny every week, so I just wanted to make sure the both of them get to enjoy it.”

Mari’s heart sank when she heard her little brother’s name, but her smile remained aglow.

“So you’re doing it for Sunny too? I see…” Mari echoed. “That's really sweet of you.”

“Not at all,” Shopkeep assured. “Kel’s been the only one to pass by for the last two weeks, so he’s the one who’s been keeping me up to date on things. Thanks to him, I found out about both your accident and Sunny shutting himself in.”

“I see…” Mari pondered. “Has Kel really been the only one whose been stopping by Hobbeez? I mean… I can understand Sunny, but Aubrey usually tags along with Kel, doesn’t she?”

“Usually.” Shopkeep agreed. “Only been Kel these last two weeks though, like I said. I did ask him one time why Aubrey hasn’t been tagging along, but he seemed just as confused as we are. All he said was that she’s been busy.”

“Busy… well that does make sense,” Mari confirmed to herself. Aubrey visited her in the hospital on the first few days after the incident, but her visits became less and less frequent. “Busy” was an answer that scratched the itch bothering her for some time, and it satisfied her enough to not feel the need to question _what_ she was busy with.

“Yeah. So… anyways… um… I’m sorry to hear about your accident. And your… uh… legs.”

“There you go being dramatic again!” Mari waved off. “No need to apologize, it’s not like you were the one who pushed me down the stairs or anything.”

Mari’s heart nearly jumped out of her chest at the realization of what she said, but considering Shopkeep’s lack of reaction, it luckily seemed to have flown over his head. If he had picked up on the implication that _someone else_ pushed her down the stairs, she might have ran straight out of the store and never come back. Paralyzed legs be damned.

“Yeah, you’re right…” Shopkeep sheepishly replied. “So when did you return home anyways? How’s things been for you? And how’s things been for Sunny?”

“I actually just got released from the hospital yesterday! Things have been tough for me of course, but I’m adapting quick enough. And I got to have a nice, long talk with Sunny yesterday too! I think seeing his big sister back at home really brightened him up, so he’ll be up and about and spending money at Hobbeez again in no time!”

“Good to hear, though I dunno how I feel about you insinuating I'm only concerned about his wallet. Jokes aside, I knew he’d start getting better once you returned. He talks about you all the time when he’s here after all.”

Mari could only meet Shopkeep’s praise with a small, guilty smirk.

“But don’t forget to take care of yourself too, you know? I can’t do much for you, but I could at least offer you a small discount if you’re looking to buy stuff. Fiction is a good way to distract yourself from the real world, and sometimes that’s exactly what you need to get through a day.”

It might have sounded like silly and childish advice, but it was something Mari really took to heart. With how difficult and heavy the real world was starting to feel, the idea of losing herself in a world of fantasy was starting to sound more and more appealing.

So long as that fantasy world wasn’t confined to a single white room, of course.

“That’s surprisingly insightful of you,” Mari teased. “Maybe you should turn Hobbeez into a doctor’s office instead~”

“Come on Mari…” Shopkeep mumbled. “Me? A doctor? Never gonna happen. Even if I wanted to, it’s not like I could compete with Hero or anything…”

“Huh? Sorry, what was that?” Mari asked, unable to make out the second half of Shopkeep’s mumbling.

“N-Nothing!”

Sidestepping the question with the grace of a new-born deer, Shopkeeping quickly pulled out his wallet as a means to change the subject.

“A-Anyways, sorry I didn’t come visit you at the hospital or anything. Didn’t want to take time away from your family and friends. B-But now that you’re here, I can at least make up for it with this.”

Pulling out three dollars worth of quarters, Mari watched as the Shopkeep slowly inserted each coin into the capsule toy machine sitting on the counter. Twisting the knob, a small capsule rolled down straight into the Shopkeep’s waiting hand, who then passed it onto Mari. Though slightly confused, Mari twisted the capsule open, and pulled out a charm that could only be described as… unique.

“Um, what’s this for?”

“Consider it a… get well gift? Nah… that’s really lame, huh?”

“Well I wouldn’t call it lame, it’s actually kind of cute!’ Mari smiled, dangling the keychain of a yellow cat with stretchy red hands in front of her face. “But it’s a little late for a get-well gift, isn’t it?”

“Consider it a belated birthday gift or something, then?”

“It’s really late for a belated birthday gift, isn’t it?!”

“Come on! It’s gotta be March 1st somewhere out there in the universe, right?! Just take it already!”

Mari couldn’t help but snicker at Shopkeep’s roundabout reasonings for wanting to give her a gift. Taking the hint, Mari stopped her teasing at kindly accepted the “cute” keychain dangling on her finger.

“Fair enough,” Mari snickered. “I’ll be sure to add it to my keychain collection hanging off my phone later. Though warning you now, Hero miiiiiiight get a little upset if he found out who I got it from~”

“W-Wait really?” Shopkeep gulped. “Er, maybe I shouldn’t-“

“I’m just kidding!” Mari said, as her small snicker turned into a full-fledge laugh. “It’s just a gift from a friend! Hero’s not gonna get jealous over something like this. If anything, he’d probably give you a big hug I told him.”

“Oh… haha… I see…” Shopkeep sighed in relief. Though he was glad he was going to live another day, there was also a strange feeling of defeat building within that he couldn’t understand.

“Yeah, Hero’s just a big softie! Think it runs in the family. But yeah, thanks a lot for the “birthday” gift! I really appreciate it, Shopkeep.”

“No problem…” Shopkeep sighed. “But if you really wanted to show your appreciation, you could stop calling me Shopkeep. My name is—"

“I’VE FINALLY FOUND IT!”

Almost as if on cue, the other softie of the family jumps out from behind the comic shelves, holding one in his hands like it was a legendary treasure. Running as fast as his little legs would let him, Kel slammed the comic down onto the counter, and blinded the unprepared Shopkeep’s eyes with his smile.

“One copy of Captain Spaceboy, if you please~”

“Geez kid, you took so dang long that I thought you got lost or something!” Shopkeep scoffed as he started to scan the comic through the register. “Were my instructions not good enough? This will be $5 by the way.”

“Honestly… your instructions kiiiiiiiinda sucked.” Kel said as he handed over a crisp five dollar bill. “I tried following what you said at first, but eventually I just gave up and threw comics off the shelf until I found it!”

“YOU DID WHAT?!?!”

“ThanksalotShopkeepseeyounextweekbye!”

Before Shopkeep could process everything he was just told, Kel quickly swiped the comic from Shopkeep’s frozen hands, running out of the store as a resounding **_KEL!_** from both Shopkeep and Mari trailed behind him. Mari peeked around to the comic book section in hopes of finding out that Kel was just overexaggerating; however, the grimace that she gave Shopkeep when she returned made it clear that the wake of destruction he left was _very_ real.

“I’m… so sorry…”

“Aha… haha… hahaha…” Shopkeep laughed like he was trying his hardest to hold back his tears. “You don’t need to apologize… it’s not like you were the one who threw my merchandise onto the floor without a shred of sympathy.”

“I know.” Mari bowed her head. “But still, I’m sorry. Let me help you clean all that up.”

“Absolutely not. It’s my store, so it’s my responsibility.”

“You don’t understand,” Mari warned. “What’s waiting for you around that corner is not just a bad dream, it’s a _nightmare_. I’m not going to let you handle that on your own.”

“Mari. _Please_.” Shopkeep cried out as the tears slowly began to drip down his face. “Having you clean that mess up would make me feel even worse. If you really want to help me, then please just listen to my final wish.”

After a long, silent tug-of-war between the two, Mari was the one who finally decided to let go. As much as it pained Mari, Shopkeep’s determination was far too great, and Mari wanted to respect it in her own way.

“Alright, you win.” Mari whispered. “But I _will_ be telling Hero about this, and _will_ be scolding Kel myself later, at the very least.”

“I agree to your terms,” Shopkeep nodded, as he wiped the tears from his face. “But would Hero really do something to teach Kel a lesson? What would he even do? Hug him?”

“Probably!” Mari said. “Hug him to _death_ that is.”

“Heh, seems like both brothers are not to be underestimated after all.”

“Yup! Kind, but dangerous.” Mari nodded. “Anyways, I’ll… leave this mess to you then?”

“Yeah, you have more important things to take care of, right? Don’t you worry about me any longer.”

“If you say so. Just stay strong, Shopkeep. I wish you luck, because you're really going to need it.”

“Same to you. But seriously, can you stop calling me Shopkeep? I keep trying to tell you that my name is—”

-♫-

After having to be convinced to leave Hobbeez about four more times, Mari finally began to follow the footsteps of the walking disaster known as Kel. It wasn’t a very difficult trail to follow, considering the destination was made quite clear to both of them prior to arriving at Hobbeez. As the automatic doors of the Othermart slid themselves open for Mari, she confirmed that her biggest concern wasn’t finding Kel, it was the chance that a burning hellscape was waiting for her on the other side of the glass.

Thankfully that mental image remained as it should — a mere fantasy.

“Yo Mari! Long time no see!”

It took about two minutes for Mari to wheel herself to the drinks section, where Kel was waiting with Captain Spaceboy in one hand, and a bottle of Orange Joe in another. He beamed at Mari as if the ruckus at Hobbeez never happened, but Mari might as well have been wearing sunglasses, because her flick landed perfectly on Kel’s forehead without any problem.

After clouding over Kel’s sunny smile, Mari continued the scolding by dragging him along with her further into the Othermart. Mari wanted to pass by the bakery and greet her former employers, but her visit was ill-timed, as they ended up being closed for the day.

Unfortunate, but Mari didn’t let it get her down. While Kel decided what he wanted to eat for his really late lunch, Mari decided to do a little bit of grocery shopping, trying her best to remember what need restocking in the kitchen.

By the time the two finished their Othermart shopping, the evening sky began to cover the quiet town with a shade of orange, matching the color of the drink Kel was swirling around in his hand.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh~ That hit the spot!”

Chugging down the remainder of his Orange Joe, Kel let out a long, satisfied sigh as he held the now empty bottle up into the evening sky.

“Nothing beats an Orange Joe! Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelicious~”

“I’m not sure if I should be impressed or concerned that you were able to down that bottle that quickly, but shouldn’t you have waited until you got home? Now you won’t have anything to drink with your sandwich.”

“…………………Drat, you’re right. Curse you Orange Joe! Your temptation is too strong! And I don’t have enough money to buy another one! Maybe I can find one out in the wild.”

Fueled by sugary addiction, Kel turned the empty bottle into a makeshift telescope, scanning the plaza for another swig of orange goodness. Mari traveled by his side with a smile on her face, content with letting Kel have his fun... so long as its not at the cost of others.

“Hey… it’s Basil!”

Once Kel stopped, Mari followed suit. Following the direction of Kel’s makeshift telescope, Mari’s eyes soon spied a very familiar friend stepping out of Fix-It a little farther down Faraway Plaza. But Mari didn’t need a telescope to see that something was off, even from this distance.

Basil jumped when he suddenly heard his name, which was expected from the typically timid boy. What wasn’t expected was Basil’s reaction after he found out who was calling out to him. Pretending he didn’t hear Kel was strange enough, but after realizing Kel was gonna keep shouting his name regardless, the smile Basil put on is what really rung the bells in Mari’s head.

It was a smile so forced that it looked like the last thing Basil wanted to do. A fake smile that Mari could easily recognize, as it was similar to the one she herself wore often. The kind of smile that had no business being made by a child as sweet as Basil. Truthfully, if he wasn’t wearing his signature flower crown, then Mari might not have even recognized him.

“Basil! Hey Basil! What are you doing here?”

Desperate to stop Kel from attracting anymore public attention, Basil reluctantly walked himself closer to the two, giving a weak wave when he arrived.

“H-Hey Kel…” Basil muttered. “Um… there were some new flower seeds at Fix-It that I wanted to buy. Grandma was busy today… so I just… went by myself…”

“Ohhhhh, so that’s why you left school so quick today! If you had told me that, then I woulda came with you!”

“Oh… s-sorry…”

“Nah, it’s cool. Anyways, look who came back from the hospital yesterday! Ta-da! Mari’s back!”

As Kel posed his arms dramatically to show off Mari, she flashed a friendly smile at Basil, who returned the gesture by averting his eyes to the side.

“Hello Basil! I hope you’ve been doing well.”

“Uh… yeah… h-hey Mari… I’m glad you’re out of the hospital…”

“Anyways,” Kel interrupted. “We were about to go back to Sunny’s house and read the latest volume of Captain Spaceboy! You should come along with us Basil!”

“H-Huh? S-Sorry… I don’t think-“

“Come ooooooon!” Kel pleaded. “I know how much you like Sweetheart! She’s supposed to finally get rescued this volume!”

“Kel… I really don’t…”

“Actually,” Mari interjected. “I’d like for you to come over too Basil, but only if you don’t mind of course. Me and my mom just made a new flower arrangement, and I’d love to get your opinion on it.”

“………A-Alright… but I can’t stay long…”

Mari threw out the perfect bait to win Basil over. Hook, line, and sinker.

“Heck yeah! Back to Sunny’s house we go!”

Though as enthusiastic as Kel tried making the start of the trip, the actual walk back home lacked any real fanfare. Kel and Mari engaged in small talk every few blocks, but Basil mostly kept to himself a few steps behind them, occasionally contributing with the fewest words possible.

“Woah, did you buy that scary looking keychain at Hobbeez, Mari?”

“ _Excuse you_. It’s not scary, it’s cute! And I didn’t buy it, Shopkeep gave it to me. He said it was a belated birthday present.”

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? Your birthday was like years ago! How come he didn’t give me a belated birthday present?”

“Well Kel… it probably has something to do with the huge mess you left in his store. Forget about birthday present, you’ll be lucky if he even lets you back into Hobbeez.”

“Shoot, you’re right…” Kel muttered with a slight hint of concern, before quickly brushing it off with a smile. “Oh well, I’m sure he’ll forget all about it by next week. At least I hope he will! Anyways, do you know what’s been going on with Aubrey, Basil?”

“Huh?” Basil jumped, surprised that the conversation suddenly put the spotlight on him. “N-No? Why would you ask me?”

“Cuz I see you and her talking at school all the time. And she never wants to go with me to hang out with Sunny. Keeps saying she’s busy. Busy with what?”

“Oh… um… she only really talks to me about school stuff, so I guess she’s just busy with school work…”

“Hmmm… makes sense. Why would she care so much about school when winter break is just around the corner though? She’s such a weirdo.”

“Really Kel?” Mari scolded. “I think it’s a good thing that she worries so much about school. If anything, you should try to be more like her!”

“Ewwwwwwwwwww!” Kel gagged. “I’d rather eat a trillion pickles than be more like Aubrey. _Guh-ross_!”

**-♪-**

The trio eventually arrived back at Mari’s home, where Kel wasted no time dashing towards the stairs the moment Mari opened the door.

“Come on Basil, it’s finally time to read some Captain Spaceboy! I’ll race you up the stairs!”

“Um… it’s okay, I think I’ll just stay here…”

“What? Really? Why?”

“Basil wants to look at my new flower arrangement first, isn’t that right Basil?”

“ Y-Yeah.”

“Don’t worry about us Kel, you and Sunny can go ahead and enjoy the new comic. Me and Basil will just read it after you’re done, okay?”

“Hmm… okay then! Your loss!”

Driven the excitement of a freshly bought comic book, Kel didn’t push the subject any further, and proceeded to ditch the two in favor of Sunny and Captain Spaceboy. As Kel made his way up to the second floor, Mari offered Basil a seat on the living room couch, to which Basil hesitantly accepted.

Once Kel’s stomps up the stairs ceased, there was nothing left between to two but the silence of the living room. Kel’s barely audible narration helped a tiny bit, but beyond that, there was nothing more for the two to do beyond shuffling in their respective seats as they waited for the silence to be broken.

“Um… so… you wanted to show me a new flower arrangement?” Basil asked, surprisingly being the one to take the initiative.

“Oh, right. Um... sorry Basil! That was a lie.”

“Huh? W-What do you mean?”

“Well I mean, we _did_ make a new flower arrangement, but that’s not really why I wanted you to come over.”

“Oh.” Basil responded meekly. “Then why-“

“I just wanted to thank you.”

“...Thank me?”

“Yup, for that night.” Mari smiled, which caused Basil to reflexively avert his gaze again. “My memory on what happened after I tripped down the stairs was a complete blank, but Hero and my mom filled me in. You were the one who found me after my accident, right? You called everyone, called for help, and stuck around to comfort Sunny. If you weren’t there, then things could’ve ended up way worse than two broken legs, right? I really can’t thank you enough Basil!”

What followed afterwards was probably the most awkward silence Mari had ever experienced. A silence so dense that she couldn’t even tell if the heartbeats she heard were Basil’s or her own. This was a test for both him and her; a lie mixed with truth presented in the most innocent manner. If Basil was there that night, then there’s a chance he knows what really happened. But if that were true, then why hasn’t he said anything about it? Was it for the same reason Mari hid it, or was it because of something else? Could this be the reason why Basil was acting more timid and distant than usual?

Mari wanted to find out what Basil knew.  
Mari needed to know what Basil believed.  
Mari had to know how far she was willing to take this lie.

“………………………..O-Oh… well… you’re… you’re welcome! Ha ha. You don’t really need to thank me though; I... just did what anyone would do…!”

Yet Basil’s response satisfied none of those wishes. It only served to cloud Mari’s mind even further.

“AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW MAN! THAT WAS THE BEST ISSUE OF CAPTAIN SPACEBOY EVER!!”

But before Mari could press Basil, Kel had made his grand return into the living room, shaking the entirety of the household with his enthusiastic yells.

“I can’t believe Captain Spaceboy beat Clover AND Sealife all by himself! They were talking such a big game, but Captain Spaceboy was all **BAM** and **POW** and **SHAZAM** and took em out like it was nothing! And man that cliffhanger at the end! Captain Spaceboy fought so hard because he thought Sweetheart was waiting for him in their castle, but it turns out she was in a different castle this WHOLE time! They really know how to make you want to buy the next volume! You guys really need to find out what happens for yourselves!”

For better or worse, Kel’s return burst the bubble of tension building up in the living room. Mari was miffed that her chance to press Basil was taken from her, but that feeling was quickly written over by relief. Yeah… she was more thankful Kel had such sound timing, so thankful that she was willing to ignore the fact he spoiled the very thing he wanted them to read.

“Wow, that sounds exciting!” Mari played along. “Doesn’t it Basil?”

“Y-Yeah…”

“We’ll definitely read it sometime this week.”

“Why don’t we all just read it right now?” Kel questioned. “I don’t mind reading through it with you guys again!”

“I’d like to…” Basil muttered. “But… I really should go home now. My grandma is probably worried about me…”

“Yeah, and it’s almost dinner time!” Mari added. “There are a couple of chores I need to take care of before my parents get home, and I need to start making dinner for Sunny.”

“Man… fine…” Kel pouted, not even trying to hide his childish disappointment. “I guess I should really be heading home too, but can I at least drop this issue off in the treehouse with the rest of our comics? That way, anyone can read it at anytime!”

“KEL!” Basil yelled unexpectedly, which stunned the two silent, and caused him to regret raising his voice almost immediately. “S-Sorry, but... that’s… that’s a bit insensitive isn’t it? I mean, Mari can’t climb up to the treehouse anymore…”

“Oh… you’re right…” Kel agreed apologetically, as if that thought genuinely didn’t cross his mind.

“Ahahaha, don’t worry about it!” Mari brushed it off to the best of her ability. “We've always kept the comics in our treehouse right? There’s no reason to have to change things just for me. Besides, I can just have you guys climb it for me if need me. You’d even be willing to read it to me from up there, wouldn’t you Kel?”

“Yeah!” Kel smile, bouncing back from his mistake. “Heck, I’ll even bring the treehouse down to you if want! I’ve been flexing a lot lately, so I’ve gotten way stronger! Though I guess… it wouldn’t be a treehouse if it’s not on a tree anymore. What would it be? Grasshouse? Backyardhouse? Hmm… this is harder than I thought…”

“Heh heh heh, I don’t think you need to go that far, but I appreciate the sentiment. I appreciate you being concerned about me too Basil, but you don’t need to worry too much either.”

“Oh… okay then…” Basil muttered. “Well, I guess I’ll be going now.”

“Take care Basil.”

“See ya Basil! Let’s hang out longer next time!”

With a weak wave farewell, Basil quickly stepped his way out of the front door, refusing to look at them directly in the eyes until the very end. It was something Kel never noticed, and something Mari never wanted to.

“Welp.” Kel continued on. “Guess I’ll run over to the treehouse real quick and then head home myself. Mom might bite my ears off if she finds out how long I stuck around here, heh heh…”

“Well let’s make sure that doesn’t happen!” Mari teased, as she wheeled her way towards the sliding door at the back of the living room. Kel was already sprinting towards the backyard treehouse before Mari even had the door halfway open, which only caused the girl to sigh.

There was no real reason for Mari to follow him, but she did so anyways, albeit at a much slower pace. It’s the first time she’s been back here since the accident, but the unchanged scenery caused a wave of nostalgia to travel alongside the evening breeze.

“Huh…?”

Yet once Mari felt the tears welling up in her eyes, she understood that even this wasn’t enough to bottle it all in for long. Once her eyes laid on the looming treehouse in the distance, the reality that she would never be able to go up there finally sunk in, and that realization hit her much harder than she expected.

“Come on Mari…” She whispered to herself, quickly wiping away the tears before they could really get started. “You’re seriously crying over something like this? You’re not a kid anymore, you know…”

Simultaneously smacking both of her cheeks, Mari shook away all the bad feelings and scanned the place for something to keep her mind busy. As there was little that changed from when she last visited her backyard, the number of toys the littered the grass didn’t surprise her at all, though Mari wished that was the one thing that _did_ change.

Alas, no matter how many times Mari scolded the kids when they played out here, she and Hero always ended up being the ones to clean their mess at the end of the day. From the sounds of things, the kids haven’t came by to play ever since that night, and her parents typically kept their distance from the backyard, so that must mean that these toys have been laying here for at least two weeks now. What a _wonderful_ present they’ve all left for her.

But Mari wasn’t complaining, as this was just the busywork she needed while waiting for Kel. Knowing him, he’ll inevitably get distracted by something in the treehouse, not that Mari minded all that much. It was thanks to Kel that she was able to get her mind off of the things she didn’t want to think about, and experience the “normalcy” no one else wanted to give her.

Kel has helped her more than he could ever know, so Mari wanted to thank him in her own way. Of course, making sure he’ll have ears in the foreseeable future is part of that, but she was sure a few more minutes wouldn’t hurt.

Turning her lap into a makeshift toybox, she slowly made her way across the backyard, treating every new toy as a trip down memory lane. Basil’s building blocks. Aubrey’s Sweetheart doll. Kel’s jacks. Sunny’s precious stuffed animals. They were all precious items that filled Mari with a fuzzy warmth, and made her wish for the day everything was back to normal even more.

But in what seem like something that was becoming the norm, the more Mari tried losing herself in a fantasy, the faster reality would drag her back. Making her way through a now pristine looking backyard, Mari noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

The last toy poked out from behind her favorite tree; one end of a jump rope, to be exact. It was an unexpected place to find a toy, but the kids played everywhere and anywhere in the backyard, so there wasn’t any rhyme or reasons to where the toys were left. Thus Mari didn’t think anything of it; it was only when she got close enough to touch it that a strange feeling began to seep through her skin.

“What…”

Any warmth that could have been found from this toy was erased the moment she sat above it. The only thing it made her feel was a creeping chill, like a legion of spiders were skittering down her spine.

“…is…”

When she reached out for it, she noticed that her hand was trembling slightly. Why? Why was that the first thing Mari thought of when she saw it? Why did she even think of it at all? Perhaps her brain might have been damaged during the fall after all. That was the only explanation, that was the only reason why her mind immediately went to such a dark place. Why she couldn’t see it as anything else, no matter how hard she tried.

“…this…?”

The shape of the jump rope Mari gripped tightly in her hands... she couldn't see it resembling anything other than a noose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy belated birthday Mari! I wanted to get this new chapter out on the actual day of, but time is a cruel and unforgiving mistress. Gaps between future chapters will probably just as large, if not larger, so I apologizer in advanced to the one person who looks forward to this fic. 
> 
> I've altered the time Mari stayed in the hospital from one week to two weeks, just to make the "consequences" of her and Sunny's absence feel a little more believable. I'll be going back to edit older chapters some time later.
> 
> Beyond that, there isn't much I want to say about this chapter, except that it's probably still March 1st somewhere out there in the universe, so I got this chapter out right on time. Unfortunately, there is nowhere in the cosmos where Shopkeep and Mari would ever even get close to working out.. sorry Shopkeep. My headcanon is that he's the same age as Mari and Hero, and he'll still be working at Hobbeez even after four years pass.
> 
> Next chapter is titled _Just Leave Me Alone_ , and it'll have the debut of the last member of ~~DA DK CREW~~ the Omori gang. She's my favorite character from the game too, so it may or may not be a biased chapter. Don't say I didn't warn you.


End file.
